PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


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THE 


BLATCHFORD 


MEMORIAL. 


I  will,  for  their  sakes,  remember  the  covenant  of  their  ancestors. 

Lev.,  xxvi,  45. 


NEW    YOKE 
1871. 


I  have  thought  that  this  record  would  be  interesting  to  the  lineal 
descendants  of  the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.  D.,  who  now 
number  sixty-four  persons  in  life,  and  perhaps  to  others.  Nearly  all 
the  materials  embraced  in  it  have  been  collected  and  arranged  by  the 
assiduity  and  care  of  Miss  Harriet  W.  Blatchford,  of  Troy,  N.  Y.  The 
coat  of  anns  is  a  facsimile  from  a  larger  copy  in  my  possession.  I  find 
it  thus  described  in  Burke's  General  Armory,  3d  edition,  London,  1851  : 
"  Az.  two  bars  wavy  or,  on  a  chief  of  the  last  three  pheons  of  the  first. 
Crest — A  swan's  head  and  neck,  erased  sa.  betw.  two  wings  ar." 

SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD. 

New  York,  February,  1871. 


CONTENTS. 


The  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D. 

Autobiography 

Memoir         ..... 
Obituary  .... 

Funeral  Sermon,  by  Dr.  Nott 

Mrs.  Alicia  Blatchford 

The  Reverend  Henry  Blatchford 

Mary  Milford  Windeatt  Blatchford 

Alicia  Windeatt  Blatchford 

Thomas  Windeatt  Blatchford,  M.D 

Samuel  Milford  Blatchford 

The  Reverend  John  Blatchford,  D.D. 

Edgcumbe  HEATn  Blatchford 

Genealogy    ..... 


PAGE. 

1-68 

1-33 

34-53 

53-55 

55-08 

69-74 

75-77 

79-81 

83 

85-90 

91,92 

93,94 

95 

97-104 

THE  BLATCHFOBD  MEMORIAL. 


THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 


THE   REVEREND    SAMUEL   BLATOHPORD,  D.D. 

The  Reverend  Dr.  Blatchford,  in  compliance  with  the  request  of  his  children, 
dictated,  shortly  before  his  death,  this  narrative  of  the  principal  events  of  his  life. 
It  conies  down,  however,  only  to  the  year  180*7.    It  is  addressed  to  his  children. 

I  was  born  in  the  year  1767,  in  the  town  of  Plymouth 
Dock,  now  called  Devonport,  in  the  county  of  Devon, 
England.  My  lather,  Henry  Blatchford,  was  a  descendant  of 
Major  Blatchford,  who  was  at  the  battle  of  the  Boyne,  having 
come  over  from  Holland  with  King  William's  army.  My 
mother's  name  was  Mary.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Richard 
Heath,  Esq.,  of  Totness,  in  Devonshire.*  My  father  was 
twice  married.  By  his  first  wife  he  had  a  son  called  John, 
who  was  eminent  for  his  piety,  and  died  a  few  years  since,  in 
the  triumph  of  faith.  By  his  second  wife,  my  mother,  to 
whom  he  was  married  in  the  year  1766,  he  had  four  children 
— Samuel,  Jane,  Joseph,  and  William.  William  died  in 
infancy.  Joseph  died  at  the  age  of  five  years,  exhibiting  a 
most  remarkable  instance  of  early  piety,  perhaps  equal  to 
any  detailed  in  "  Janeway's  Token   for  Children."     He  ex- 


*  A  "  Silver  Quart"  is  a  relic  in  the  family.  The  date  on  the  handle  is  1749. 
Above  it  are  the  letters  "  RH'M."  Mrs.  Alicia  Blatchford,  on  her  death  bed, 
gave  this  "Silver  Quart"  to  her  oldest  living  son,  Thomas  Windeatt.  In  1847, 
at  the  request  of  the  family,  the  following  inscription  was  engraved  on  it:  "Mary, 
daughter  of  Richard  and  Mary  Heath,  wife  of  Henry  Blatchford,  and  mother  of 
the  Rev.  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D.,  was  born  at  Plymouth  Dock,  England,  1749. 
At  her  baptism,  according  to  an  old  custom,  coin  was  cast  into  the  baptismal 
font  by  friends  witnessing  the  ceremony,  from  which  this  '  Silver  Quart '  was  then 
made."     On  the  reverse  side  is  the  following : 

"Mary  Heath,  born  1749. 

Samuel  Blatchford,  "     1767. 

Thomas  Windeatt  Blatchford,   "     1794." 


2  THE   BLATCHFOKD   MEMORIAL. 

pired  in  his  father's  arms,  and  spent  his  last  laboring  breath 
in  singing  the  pilgrim's  song — "  Guide  me,  Oh,  Thou  Great 
Jehovah,"  &c.  My  father  and  mother  were  each  of  them 
eminent  for  piety.  The  former  owed  his  first  religious  im- 
pressions to  the  preaching  of  the  Reverend  John  Wesley,  and 
the  latter  to  that  of  the  venerable  Rowland  Hill. 

Having  been  early  devoted  by  my  parents  to  the  service  of 
the  sanctuary,  should  it  please  God  to  make  me  a  subject  of 
divine  grace,  my  studies  were  directed  with  a  special  reference 
to  that  object.  My  English  education  was  superintended  by  a 
Mr.  Waters,  whose  name  I  cannot  mention  but  with  the  great- 
est respect,  on  account  of  that  faithful  and  pious  discharge  of 
his  duty  toward  me  which  has  been  a  source  of  benefit  I  can 
never  forget.  My  classical  studies  commenced  at  an  early 
age,  first  under  the  care  of  the  Reverend  Mr.  King,  and  after- 
ward under  the  Reverend  Mr.  Stokes,  both  of  whom  were 
clergymen  in  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  were  considered  men 
of  science. 

About  this  time  the  American  Revolution  commenced,  an 
event  which  excited  the  interest  of  all  Europe,  and  brought 
forward,  even  in  England,  many  open  friends  to  the  claims  of 
America,  and  the  rights  and  liberty  of  the  Provinces.  Among 
these  were  my  relatives,  who  distinguished  themselves,  as 
Providence  gave  them  opportunity,  by  manifesting  the  sin- 
cerity of  their  zeal.  This  was  particularly  the  case  with  the 
Reverend  Robert  Heath,  my  mother's  eldest  brother,  who, 
together  with  my  mother,  essentially  ameliorated  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  American  prisoners  who  were  confined  in  Mill 
Prison  at  Dartmoor.  From  their  own  resources  they  ad- 
vanced considerable  sums,  until,  at  length,  a  benevolent  associ- 
ation was  formed  in  London,  for  this  purpose.  On  referring 
to  a  letter  which  I  received  from  my  uncle  Heath,  dated  Feb- 
ruary 13th,  1797,  I  find  that  the  Marquis  of  Rockingham,  the 
Duke  of  Richmond,  and  several  other  conspicuous  characters, 
were  at  the  head  of  this  noble  institution.  "  It  was  at  the 
request  of  these  noblemen,"  says  Mr.  Fleath,  "  who  formed  the 
committee  of  this  society,  that  I  undertook  to  distribute  such 
subscriptions  as  might  be  raised  for  this  purpose  of  benevo- 
lence.    That  which  I  was  privileged  in  doing  afforded  me  sin- 


THE   REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  3 

cere  pleasure,  for,  they  were  in  a  state  in  which  they  could  not 
help  themselves."  The  assistance  was  sometimes  conveyed  by 
Mr.  Heath's  direct  agency,  and  sometimes  I  was  employed,  as 
being  less  subject  to  suspicion.  In  consequence  of  this,  I  was 
compelled  to  spend  portions  of  several  days  in  each  week  in 
that  prison  where  our  American  brethren  were  treated  rather 
as  rebels  against  the  government  than  as  prisoners  of  war. 
The  kindness  with  which  I  was  received  by  these  poor  fellows, 
and  the  frequent  conversations  which  I  held  with  them  rel- 
ative to  their  country  and  their  homes,  awakened  within  me 
feelings  by  no  means  transient,  and  led  me,  at  that  early  age,  to 
determine  that,  when  I  became  a  man,  I  would  choose  my  resi- 
dence in  America.  I  well  remember  their  expressions  of  grati- 
tude; and  their  sincerity  was  testified  by  the  numerous  little 
presents  which  I  constantly  received  from  them,  consisting  of 
carved  boxes,  box  inkstands,  and  miniature  ships,  beautifully 
rigged. 

The  spiritual  wants  of  these  poor  fellows  were  not  neglected. 
Bibles  and  hymn  books  were  distributed  among  them,  and  Mr. 
Heath  would  frequently  address  them  on  the  subject  of  religion. 
Nor  did  the  charities  of  these  benevolent  individuals  stop  here. 
Retreats  were  provided  for  such  as  fortunately  should  make 
their  escape.  Among  these  happy  few,  was  the  late  Captain 
Smedley,  collector  of  customs  at  the  port  of  Fairfield,  in  Con- 
necticut. He  was  concealed  in  the  house  of  a  Mrs.  Chenough, 
whither  I  have  often  been  sent  with  means  of  relief  for  him  and 
others. 

Before  an  opportunity  arose  for  forwarding  those  concealed 
at  Mrs.  Chenough's  to  Holland,  on  their  way  to  America,  the 
following  circumstance  occurred :  A  gentleman,  captain  of  a 
vessel  of  war,  but  whose  name  I  do  not  recollect,  had  been  se- 
creted at  my  father's  until  the  search  after  him  was  supposed  to 
be  over.  To  effect  his  return,  it  was  determined  that  he  should 
accompany  my  uncle  and  my  mother  to  London.  A  post-chaise 
received  them  about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  they 
travelled  unmolested  as  far  as  Haldown  Heath,  an  extensive 
Common  of  flinty  soil,  between  Plymouth  Dock  and  Exeter, 
when,  hearing  the  trampling  of  horses,  my  uncle  perceived,  from 
the  glass  in  the  back  of  the  chaise,  that  a  company  of  horsemen 


4  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

was  pursuing  them.  In  this  extremity,  the  expedient  was 
adopted,  of  placing  the  fugitive  on  the  bottom  of  the  carriage, 
and  concealing  him  with  their  cloaks.  The  company,  having 
overtaken  them,  caused  the  postillion  to  stop.  Observation  was 
made  by  the  officer,  and  the  company  passed  on,  after  having 
made  an  apology  for  detaining  them.  They  now  hoped  to  meet 
with  no  farther  molestation,  but  soon  perceived  that  the  horse- 
men had  halted,  and  were  waiting  the  coming  up  of  the  carriage. 
The  postillion  was  again  ordered  to  stop,  the  former  process  was 
repeated,  and  they  then  passed  on  towards  the  city.  Whether 
the  fugitive  was  really  being  pursued  or  not,  could  not  be  ascer- 
tained. My  uncle  thought  it  prudent,  instead  of  going  into  the 
city,  to  enter  the  lower  suburbs,  and  proceed  immediately  to  the 
town  of  Collomton,  about  twelve  miles  distant,  on  the  Bristol 
road.  At  Collomton  they  changed  carriages,  and  reached  Lon- 
don in  safety.  My  mother,  who  was  a  woman  of  timid  make, 
although  not  apprehensive  at  the  time  of  suffering  any  evil 
effects  from  her  fright,  underwent,  in  consequence  of  it,  a  severe 
attack  of  illness.  She  was  removed  from  the  carriage  to  her  bed 
at  her  brother's,  Mr.  Richard  Heath's,  and  was  unable  to  leave 
it  for  the  space  of  six  weeks. 

When  I  was  between  the  ages  of  seven  and  nine  years,  I  ex- 
perienced two  instances  of  divine  interference  in  the  preserva- 
tion of  life,  when  exposed  to  imminent  danger.  The  first  of 
these  was  the  following :  I  had  been  amusing  myself  nearly 
the  whole  of  an  afternoon  by  fishing  from  a  boat  which  lay  be- 
side the  dock,  and  was  so  much  occupied  by  my  employment, 
that  I  did  not  perceive  the  falling  of  the  tide.  It  fell,  I  think, 
about  twelve  or  fourteen  feet.  It  now  became  a  question  how 
to  return,  and  I  determined  to  clamber  up  by  the  help  of  the 
projecting  stones  by  which  the  pier  was  built.  In  the  attempt, 
one  of  the  stones  gave  way,  and  I  fell  between  the  boat  and  the 
pier.  At  the  adjoining  pier  lay  a  collier,  of  about  three  hundred 
tons  burden,  on  the  yard-arm  of  which  was  a  Mr.  Blewits,  be- 
longing to  the  Customs.  He  swung  off  from  the  yards  by  means 
of  a  rope,  and  caught  me  by  my  hair,  and  thus  rescued  me  from 
a  watery  grave. 

The  second  circumstance,  to  which  I  have  referred,  was  this  : 
I  was  requested  to  ride  my  uncle's  horse  from  Stoke,  his  conn- 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.      5 

try  residence,  to  Plymouth  Dock.  As  I  approached  the  draw- 
bridge which  covered  the  loss,  (for  Plymouth  Dock  was  a  forti- 
fied town,)  I  slid,  by  some  means,  from  the  saddle,  and  my 
left  leg  caught  in  the  stirrup.  No  one  was  near  to  render  me 
assistance,  excepting  the  sentry,  who  was  on  guard  at  the  time  ; 
and  he  could  not  leave  his  post  without  a  breach  of  orders, 
which  would  subject  him  to  punishment.  But  the  invisible  God 
was  present,  and  graciously  sustained  me  until  the  horse  drew 
me,  without  injury,  within  the  limits  beyond  which  the  sentry 
could  not  pass.  "  Whoso  is  wise,  and  will  observe  these  things, 
even  they  shall  understand  the  loving-kindness  of  the  Lord." 

The  first  religions  impressions  which  I  recollect,  (although 
a  tenderness  of  conscience  was  remarkably  preserved,  through 
the  influence  of  that  pious  care  which  was  taken  of  my  earliest 
youth,)  commenced  when  I  was  between  eight  and  nine  years 
of  age,  under  a  sermon  by  the  Reverend  Andrew  Kinsmans, 
from  the  words,  "  The  Master  is  come,  and  calleth  for  thee."  I 
then  felt  myself  to  be  a  sinner,  and  altogether  unfit  to  appear  in 
the  Master's  presence,  as  he  stood  in  the  character  of  a  judge, 
by  whose  righteous  judgment  I  thought  I  must  be  eternally 
condemned.  Although  the  pungency  of  these  impressions,  in 
a  measure,  wore  off,  yet  I  was  still  followed  by  exercises  of  a 
very  serious  nature,  until  about  the  age  of  twelve,  when  the 
Lord  was  pleased,  as  I  humbly  hope,  to  further,  by  his  own 
spirit,  the  word  of  grace.  It  was  under  the  preaching  of  a  col- 
league of  Mr.  Kinsmans,  a  Mr.  Dunn,  from  Psalm  80,  verse  19, 
"  Turn  us  again,"  &c.  My  distress  was  very  great,  and  my  afflic- 
tion called  forth  the  solicitude  of  my  parents.  My  father  urged 
upon  me  the  great  truths  of  the  gospel,  as  the  claim  which  God 
had  upon  the  hearts  of  his  creatures,  the  necessity  of  regeneration 
and  the  certainty  of  salvation  to  all  who  should  obtain  reconcilia- 
tion with  God  through  the  merits  of  the  sacrifice  of  Christ. 
These  prayers  and  exhortations,  were,  I  trust,  instrumental  in 
causing  me  to  seek,  and,  as  I  trust,  to  obtain,  a  hope  which  will 
never  make  me  ashamed.  Now  was  I  peculiarly  delighted  with 
the  idea  of  being,  at  some  future  time,  honored  of  God  by  enter- 
ing the  ministry.  With  this  view,  I  was  sent  to  a  boarding- 
school,  at  Willington,  in  Somersetshire,  under  the  care  of  the 
Reverend  Joseph  Chadwick,  a  dissenting  clergyman  of  piety, 


6  THE   BLATCHFOKD   MEMORIAL. 

and  fine  literary  endowments.  Under  his  care  I  was  prepared 
to  become  a  member  of  the  dissenting  college  of  theology,  at 
Homerton,  near  London. 

Previously,  however,  to  my  removal  from  "Wellington,  it 
pleased  God  to  visit  my  dear  father  with  a  disease  which  ter- 
minated in  his  death.  He  was  a  rich  partaker  in  the  grace  of 
God,  lived  much  in  the  fellowship  with  the  Father  and  with 
his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and,  in  the  sixty-third  year  of  his  age, 
terminated  his  earthly  pilgrimage,  and  entered  into  that  rest 
which  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God — an  inheritance  incor- 
ruptible, undefiled,  and  that  fadeth  not  away.  He  was  a  most 
affectionate  parent.  My  last  interview  with  him  I  can  never 
forget.  He  took  me  with  him  to  Mount  Batton,  a  favorite  re- 
treat, about  half  a  mile  from  Plymouth  Dock.  After  having 
spent  a  considerable  time  there,  during  which  we  experienced 
mingled  emotions  of  pleasure  and  pain,  we  set  out  on  our  re- 
turn. Having  reached  a  retired  field,  I  received  his  last  ad- 
vice, and,  while  we  knelt  down  together  on  the  sod,  he  renew- 
edly  dedicated  me  to  God,  and  solemnly  implored  the  blessing 
of  a  covenant  God  and  Father  to  rest  upon  a  beloved  son 
whom  he  expected  never  again  to  see  in  this  vale  of  tears — 
this  land  of  separation. 

Notwithstanding  my  parents  had  early  designed  me  for 
the  gospel  ministry,  yet,  under  the  influence  of  one  or  two 
relatives,  my  mother  was  prevailed  upon  to  think  of  another 
profession  for  me.  Nothing  had  been  said  to  me  of  this  de- 
sign, until  I  was  introduced  to  Dr.  Lawrence  Reeves,  an  emi- 
nent surgeon  in  the  city  of  London,  when,  to  my  astonishment, 
the  plan  was  developed.  But  my  own  mind  was  too  intently 
fixed  upon  the  gospel  ministry,  to  accede  to  the  proj)Osal ;  so 
that,  after  having  tarried  two  or  three  weeks  in  London,  I  re- 
turned to  Willington,  where,  having  finished  my  course  of 
studies,  I  entered,  as  a  student,  the  theological  seminary  at 
Homerton,  which  afforded  many  important  advantages  to  theo- 
logical students.  The  professors  were  men  eminently  qualified 
to  fill  the  stations  they  were  called  to  occupy  in  that  interest- 
ing school  of  the  prophets.  It  has  been  the  means  of  sending 
forth  to  the  furtherance  of  Christ's  glorious  kingdom,  many 
eminently  useful  men,  who  will  doubtless  "  shine  as  the  bright: 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFOED,  D.D.      7 

ness  of  the  firmament."  The  professors  at  that  time  were  the 
Reverend  Benjamin  Davis,  classical,  oriental,  and  resident  pro- 
fessor ;  the  Reverend  Daniel  Fisher,  D.D.,  professor  of  didactic 
aucl  polemic  divinity  ;  and  Dr.  Thomas  Gibbon,  professor  of 
belles-lettres,  ecclesiastical  history,  &c,  &c.  Dr.  Gibbon  died 
during  my  second  year,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  Reverend 
Henry  May,  D.D. 

Dr.  Gibbon  is  generally  known  in  this  country  as  the  editor 
of  President  Davies'  sermons,  and  as  his  particular  friend.  He 
was  also  the  intimate  and  confidential  friend  of  Dr.  Isaac 
Watts.  Many  were  the  pleasant  communications  respecting 
Dr.  Watts  which  Dr.  Gibbons  was  pleased  to  make  to  the  stu- 
dents. He  was  with  him  during  his  sickness  and  at  his  death, 
and  often  spoke  of  the  firmness  of  his  hope,  breathing  after  im- 
mortality, and  finding  the  precious  promises  of  the  gospel  his 
support  in  a  dying  hour.  "  With  the  highest  degree  of  satis- 
faction," said  Dr.  Gibbon,  "  did  he  speak  of  that  blessed 
method  revealed  in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  whereby  we  may  be 
saved,  exhibiting,  at  once,  the  perfections  of  God  and  the  mys- 
teries of  his  grace,  encouraging  the  helpless  but  convinced  sin- 
ner to  look  for  pardon  and  peace  through  the  atoning  blood  of 
Jesus  Christ,  the  great  sacrifice  by  which  God  could  be  just 
and  yet  justify  the  repenting  and  believing  sinner.  His 
whole  soul  seemed  to  be  filled  with  gratitude  and  joy  for  the 
redemption  of  sinners  by  Jesus  Christ.  He  esteemed  as  noth- 
ing his  labors,  his  accomplishments,  and  his  merits,  and  gave 
all  the  glory  to  Him  who  had  called  him  out  of  darkness  into 
marvellous  light  and  the  hope  of  reconciliation  with  God.  A 
little  before  he  expired,  to  the  inquiry,  '  How  is  it  with  your 
soul?'  he  emphatically  replied,  'All  is  comfortable  there.' 
The  age  in  which  he  lived  might,  perhaps,  be  styled  an  age  of 
theological  and  philosophical  speculation.  Dr.  Watts  was  not 
deficient  in  speculations  on  the  most  important  points  of  divin- 
ity. This  was  his  principal  fault.  Among  other  doctrines 
essential  to  the  Christian  system  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity. 
To  this  he  yielded  implicit  belief,  as  it  is  revealed  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  believed  by  the  orthodox  church  at  large."  Thus 
far  we  have  the  testimony  of  Dr.  Gibbons.  The  speculations 
of  Dr.  Watts  as  to  the  modus  of  existence  of  the  sacred  three 


8  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

gave  birth  to  a  variety  of  attempts,  on  the  part  of  Arians  and 
Sabellians,  to  enlist  his  name  as  an  authority  on  their  side  of 
the  question.  These,  however,  could  never  succeed  during  the 
life-time  of  Dr.  Gibbons,  and  of  others  who  were  personally 
acquainted  with  Dr.  Watts.  But,  after  the  death  of  Dr.  Gib- 
bons, great  efforts  were  made  by  a  distinguished  individual,  an 
advocate  for  the  indwelling  scheme,  to  accomplish  this  object. 
His  design  was  to  publish  anonymously,  lest  the  knowledge  of 
the  author  should  detract  from  the  influence  of  the  work.  In 
this,  however,  he  was  defeated  by  a  mistake  of  the  printer's 
boy,  who  providentially  left  the  proof-sheets  at  another  house 
than  the  author's.  I  have  never  thought  it  strange  that 
Arians,  Sabellians,  and  other  Anti-Christians  should  anxiously 
seek  the  support  of  the  reputation  of  so  distinguished  an  indi- 
vidual ;  but  I  have  been  exceedingly  surprised  that  there  should 
exist,  among  a  section  of  the  Protestant  church,  a  disposition 
to  urge  the  charge  of  heterodoxy  against  Dr.  Watts,  as  a  reason 
for  neglecting,  in  their  worship,  the  use  of  his  invaluable 
psalms  and  hymns. 

The  seminary  at  Homerton  afforded  many  delightful  op- 
portunities for  religious  exercise,  which  were  gladly  improved 
by  many  of  the  students.  It  is  well  known  that,  around  Lon- 
don, there  are  several  charitable  establishments,  intended  for 
the  accommodation  of  widows  whose  piety  and  poverty  recom- 
mend them  to  the  benevolence  of  the  churches.  These  estab- 
lishments accommodate  variously  from  four  to  eight  widows, 
each  occupying  a  separate  apartment,  where  they  are  furnished 
with  the  various  comforts  of  life.  Here  they  are  able  to  hold 
sweet  converse  together,  and  trace  the  dealings  of  Divine 
Providence,  with  adoring  conceptions  of  the  covenant  faith- 
fulness of  the  widow's  God.  At  several  of  these  places  were 
established  weekly  lectures,  conducted  by  the  theological  stu- 
dents. It  was  delightful,  in  these  little  congregations,  formed 
of  the  widowed  mothers  in  Israel,  to  mingle  in  prayer  and 
praise,  and  meditate  on  the  great  truths  of  the  gospel.  With 
them  I  was  often  permitted  to  meet ;  and  often  have  I  felt  en- 
couraged and  animated  by  these  precious  saints,  who  seemed 
already  to  have  learned  the  language  of  the  heavenly  Canaan, 
and  longed  for  the  universal  extension  of  the  kingdom  of  our 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHEORD,  D.D.      9 

Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Often  have  I  thought,  could  they  have 
looked  forward  to  the  day  in  which  we  live  and  marked  the 
signs  of  the  times  which  afford  prospects  of  such  a  pleasing- 
character,  could  they  have  seen  the  general  diffusion  of  the 
word  of  God  amongst  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  attended 
the  living  preacher  with  the  Bible  in  his  hand,  publishing 
the  mysteries  of  the  Cross  and  proffering  the  salvation 
of  the  gospel  to  Jews  and  infidels,  to  idolaters  and  savage 
men,  could  they  have  known  the  success  with  which  these 
efforts  have  been  crowned,  how  would  their  hearts  have  been 
filled  with  holy  joy,  and  the  song  of  praise  have  broken  from 
their  lips,  to  the  honor  of  the  Lamb  that  was  slain.  But  they 
have  doubtless,  long  ere  this,  been  made  acquainted  with  these 
triumphs  of  divine  grace. 

During  my  last  year  at  Homerton,  I  had  an  invitation  to 
preach,  during  the  vacation,  in  the  town  of  Plymouth,  in  the 
congregation  of  the  Reverend  C.  Mends  and  his  son  Herbert 
Mends,  who  were  co-pastors  in  the  same  church,  and  also  in  a 
congregation  connected  with  it,  at  Stonehouse,  about  a  mile 
from  Plymouth  Dock.  I  labored  about  six  weeks,  during  the 
absence  of  Mr.  Herbert  Mends,  not  I  trust  without  success. 

About  this  time,  I  was  introduced  to  the  Reverend  Wil- 
liam Evans,  pastor  of  the  united  congregations  of  Kingsbridge 
and  Ford,  where  I  had  occasionally  preached.  When  I  had  com- 
pleted my  theological  studies,  I  accepted  an  invitation  to  assist 
the  above-named  gentleman  in  the  duties  of  the  sanctuary.  Im- 
mediately after  my  settlement,  I  entered  into  a  matrimonial 
engagement  with  Miss  Alicia  Windeatt,  my  present  wife.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  Thomas  Windeatt,  Esq.,  of  Bridgetown, 
Totness.  Our  marriage  took  place  on  the  25th  of  March,  1788. 
This  connection  has  ever  been  to  me  a  source  of  happiness,  for 
which  I  cannot  be  sufficiently  thankful  to  Him  who  is  the  great 
disposer  of  all  events. 

Previously  to  our  marriage,  an  invitation  was  presented  to 
me,  through  the  Reverend  Dr.  Lake,  of  London,  to  accompany 
Lord  Dorchester  to  Canada,  to  the  governorship  of  which  he  was 
appointed.  The  design,  which  was  originated  by  Charles  James 
Fox,  was  to  establish,  under  the  patronage  of  the  British  gov- 
ernment, a  Presbyterian  Church,  with  privileges  equal  to  those 
2 


10  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

enjoyed  by  the  Episcopal  Church,  in  order  to  induce  persons  to 
emigrate  from  the  United  States  to  Canada.  The  salary  offered 
was  £300  sterling  per  annum,  with  other  emoluments,  and  I 
was  to  be  returned  at  the  expense  of  the  government,  if  dissat- 
isfied with  the  situation.  This  otfer  was  declined,  on  account 
of  the  opposition  of  my  intended  wife's  friends.  After  this,  a 
second  proposition,  of  a  similar  nature,  was  made  to  me,  but, 
for  similar  reasons  as  before,  I  again  declined,  and  Lord  Dor- 
chester sailed  without  me.  The  design  of  countenancing  Pres- 
byterianism  in  Canada,  with  equal  privileges  with  those  enjoyed 
by  Episcopalianism,  has,  I  believe,  from  that  time,  been  aban- 
doned. 

We  commenced  housekeeping  immediately  after  our  mar- 
riage, in  the  village  of  Ford.  At  this  place  was  born  our  eldest 
son,  Henry,  on  the  4th  of  December,  1788.  The  inhabitants 
were  mostly  farmers,  whose  simple  manners,  sincerity,  and  readi- 
ness to  oblige,  contributed  much  to  our  comfort ;  but,  as  the 
house  in  which  we  dwelt  was  about  to  be  occupied  by  the  owner, 
we  removed  to  Frogmore,  a  village  about  half  way  between  my 
two  congregations  at  Ford  and  Kingsbridge.  Circumstances 
now  having  arisen,  which  made  it  appear  desirable  to  the  friends 
of  religion  that  I  should  be  inducted  into  the  pastoral  office  over 
the  church  and  congregation  in  Kingsbridge,  I  acted  accord- 
ingly. This,  however,  was  not  to  interrupt  the  arrangement  I 
had  made  with  Mr.  Evans,  for  preaching  alternately  at  Ford 
and  Kingsbridge.  It  was  with  a  sincere  desire  to  be  instrumental 
in  promoting  the  interests  of  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  with  a 
deep  sense  of  responsibility,  that  I  consented  to  this  arrange- 
ment. My  ordination  took  place  at  Kingsbridge,  according  to 
the  following  certificate  :  "  Kingsbridge,  November  1th,  1789. 
This  is  to  certify,  to  all  whom  it  may  concern,  that  the  Reverend 
Samuel  Blatchford,  who  was  educated  at  Homerton,  (London,) 
was  this  day  solemnly  set  apart  to  the  pastoral  office,  over  the 
Presbyterian  church  in  Kingsbridge,  (Devon,)  with  prayer  and 
laying  on  of  hands  by  us.  AVilliam  Evans,  C,  Mends,  H. 
Mends,  Jas.  Stowal." 

Of  the  Reverend  Mr.  Evans,  my  venerable  and  beloved  col- 
league, I  could  say  much.  He  might  be  portrayed  as  eminently 
pious  and  amiable ;  and  greatly  am  I  indebted  to  him  for  the 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     11 

kindness  which  he  showed  to  me  during  the  earlier  years  of  my 
ministry.  I  was  with  him  as  a  child  with  a  father ;  and  it  may 
please  you,  my  children,  to  learn  with  what  partiality  and 
strong  regard  he  ever  cultivated  my  memory.  I  will,  therefore, 
here  insert  a  letter  which  I  received  from  him  in  1810.  He  has 
long  since  gone  to  his  rest,  and,  doubtless,  has  received  that 
crown  of  life  promised  unto  them  who  are  faithful  unto  death. 
He  was  a  faithful  and  laborious  servant  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ.  The  letter  I  referred  to,  commences  thus :  "  Oh, 
my  dear  Blatchford,  whose  memory  is  fresh  in  my  mind,  and 
ever  dear,  we  often  speak  of  you,  and  scenes  pleasant,  scenes 
past,  which,  alas,  will  never  be  experienced  again  in  this  world. 
How  short  are  the  best  comforts  of  this  life  !  When  we  have 
our  families,  as  olive  branches,  around  our  tables,  and  are 
placed  in  the  midst  of  a  circle  of  select  and  valued  friends, 
how  soon,  alas,  is  our  happiness  interrupted,  and  we  torn  asun- 
der from  those  whom  we  most  regard  and  love,  and  a  rent  is 
made  which  can  never  be  closed.  So  it  shall  not  be  in  the  so- 
ciety of  the  blessed  in  Heaven  ;  there  separation  shall  never 
take  place,  and  joy  shall  never  end.  May  our  hearts  be  there 
with  our  best  friends,  and,  best  of  all,  our  dear,  dear  Immanuel." 

The  24:th  of  January,  1790,  gave  birth  to  our  beloved 
daughter,  Mary  Milford  Windeatt. 

My  continuance  at  Kingsbridge  was  but  of  short  duration. 
Having  received  an  invitation  from  the  church  and  congrega- 
tion in  Topsham,  near  the  city  of  Exeter,  in  Devonshire,  I  re- 
moved thither  early  in  the  year  1791.  This  was  a  long  estab- 
lished Presbyterian  Church.  In  it  the  Arian  and  Sabellian 
heresies  had,  for  some  years,  prevailed.  However,  under  all 
the  circumstances  of  the  case,  being  particularly  urged  by  some 
of  my  orthodox  brethren,  whose  judgment  could  not  but  be  re- 
spected, and  resting  upon  the  blessing  of  God,  and  depending 
upon  the  promise  of  Christ,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you  always,"  &c, 
I  entered  upon  the  duties  of  so  important  a  station. 

On  the  11th  of  February,  1791,  was  born  Alicia  Windeatt ; 
on  the  23d  of  April,  1792,  Sarah  ;  and,  on  the  3d  of  May,  1793, 
Samuel.  The  latter  two  died  at  an  early  age  and  full  of  prom- 
ise. He  who  gave  them,  and  who  alone  had  the  sovereign 
right  of  recalling  them,  was  pleased  to  bereave  us  of  these 


12  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

tender  plants.  Sarah  died  June  23d,  1T93,  aged  fourteen 
months.  Samuel  died  February  3d,  1794,  aged  twenty-one 
months.  They  lie  buried  in  a  vault  under  the  communion 
table  in  the  meeting-house  at  Topsham.  These  domestic  sor- 
rows were  severely  felt,  as  afflictions  of  Divine  Providence, 
which,  whilst  calculated  to  try  our  faith,  cannot  be  endured 
without  bitterness,  which  parental  fondness  often  mingles  with 
an  unsparing  hand  in  the  cup  of  trial. 

"  The  parent's  heart, 
Doubled  in  wedlock,  multiplied  in  children, 
Stands  but  the  broader  mark  for  all  the  mischiefs 
That  rove  promiscuous  o'er  this  mortal  stage. 
Children,  those  dear  young  lambs,  those  tender  pieces 
Of  our  own  flesh,  those  little  other  selves, 
How  they  dilate  the  heart  to  wide  dimensions, 
And  soften  every  fibre,  to  improve 
The  parent's  sad  capacity  for  pain." 

While  in  the  midst  of  the  enjoyment  of  a  social  visit  at  the 
house  of  the  Reverend  Mr.  Meggs  of  the  Established  Church,  I 
received  a  message  from  home,  requesting  my  immediate  re- 
turn, on  account  of  the  dangerous  illness  of  my  daughter 
Sarah.  I  arrived  at  home  in  the  course  of  the  night,  but  only 
to  embrace  a  dying  child.  Her  funeral  was  appointed  to  take 
place  on  the  Saturday  following.  It  was  attended  by  the  Rev- 
erend Robert  Winton,  a  very  beloved  brother,  who  was  settled 
at  Exinouth,  about  six  miles  distant  from  me.  Just  previous 
to  this  solemnity,  I  received  a  letter  from  my  sister,  informing 
me  that  my  son  Henry  was  dangerously  ill  at  Plymouth,  and 
requiring  my  immediate  presence.  This  news  overwhelmed 
us  with  grief  and  consternation.  Our  little  Samuel  was  at  this 
time  unbaptized,  and  not  knowing  how  far  the  visitation  of  the 
Almighty  might  extend,  the  sacred  duty  of  devoting  him  to 
the  Lord  in  baptism  was  immediately  performed.  After  the 
funeral  of  our  beloved  Sarah,  the  same  brother  who  had  pro- 
nounced over  our  departed  babe  the  decree  of  the  Almighty, 
"Dust  thou  art  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return,"  now  took  the 
little  survivor  in  his  arms,  and  baptized  him  "  in  the  name  of 
the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost."  After  the 
performance  of  this  duty,  I  started  for  Plymouth,  without  delay. 


THE   REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  13 

I  was  going  as  I  supposed  to  the  house  of  mourning.  I  arrived 
at  my  mother's  about  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and,  the  family 
being  engaged  in  another  part  of  the  house,  I  hastened  to  the 
room  in  which  I  knew  my  son  was  accustomed  to  sleep,  where, 
to  my  inexpressible  surprise  mingled  with  feelings  of  thankful- 
ness and  gratitude  to  God,  which  His  merciful  interference  so 
emphatically  demanded,  I  found  the  dear  child  in  a  sweet 
slumber,  and,  as  I  conceived,  entirely  out  of  danger.  So,  indeed, 
the  event  proved.  This  interference  of  God,  so  timely  and 
wonderfully  displayed,  completely  assuaged  my  grief  for  the 
loss  of  my  beloved  Sarah,  so  that  I  could  do  little  else  than 
praise  God  and  give  thanks.  The  next  day  I  was  enabled  to 
preach  with  that  composure  and  tranquillity,  and  grateful  sense 
of  the  goodness  of  God,  which  His  providences  were  calculated 
to  produce. 

I  have  mentioned  the  Reverend  Robert  Wmton.  Of  our 
intimacy  and  brotherly  attachment  you  may  form  some  idea 
from  the  following  extract  from  a  letter  received  from  him 
shortly  after  my  arrival  in  America :  "  Exmouth,  November 
30th,  1795.  My  very  dear  brother :  I  received  your  letter  on  the 
11th  inst.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  express  the  pleasure  it 
gave  me  to  hear  that  you  and  your  dear  family  were  all  safely 
arrived  at  your  destined  place  of  residence.  With  flowing  eyes 
and  a  feeling  heart  I  bowed  me  down  and  returned  thanks  to 
Him  to  whom  thanks  were  due.  I  had  long  been  looking  for 
a  letter  from  you,  and,  ere  it  came,  many  from  different  parts 
called  upon  me  to  know  if  I  had  heard  from  you,  and  when,  at 
last,  I  was  able  to  say  that  I  had,  and  that  you  were  well,  every 
one  expressed  their  joy  and  many  wished  themselves  with 
you." 

On  the  20th  of  July,  1794,  we  were  blessed  with  another 
son,  whom  we  called  Thomas  Windeatt,  after  his  maternal 
grandfather. 

About  two  years  after  my  removal  to  Topsham,  the  subject 
of  Sabbath  schools  engaged  the  attention  of  many  benevolent 
persons.  The  success  of  Mr.  Raikes,  of  Gloucester,  in  his  at- 
tempt to  educate  the  ignorant  and  reclaim  the  vicious  among 
the  poor  and  neglected  youth,  left  no  doubt  as  to  the  utility  of 
such  efforts.     After  looking  around,  therefore,  on  the  popula- 


14  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

tion  of  the  town  where  Providence  had  placed  me,  and,  with 
the  aid  of  some  influential  persons,  obtaining,  in  some  degree, 
a  knowledge  of  the  wretched  situation  in  which  many  of  the 
poor  children  lived — many  of  whom  had  never  been  taught  to 
read  or  write,  and,  from  year  to  year,  had  never  entered  a  place 
of  worship,  they  being  during  the  week,  chiefly  occupied  in 
picking  oakum,  the  profits  arising  from  which  contributed  in  a 
very  small  degree  to  their  support,  and  passing  the  Sabbath  in 
acts  exceedingly  offensive  to  good  morals — we  determined  to  at- 
tempt the  establishment  of  a  Sabbath  school.  The  friends  of 
this  measure,  however,  were  not  without  apprehensions  of  op- 
position. Many  of  them  were  well  known  to  be  dissenters 
from  the  Church  of  England,  and  this  was  asserted  to  be  a 
measure  of  theirs  to  draw  away  youth  from  the  Establishment. 
A  public  meeting  was  called,  and  the  opposition  came  out  in 
its  strength ;  but  (rod  overruled  all  for  good.  He  made  the 
wrath  of  man  to  praise  Him,  and  restrained  the  remainder  of 
wrath.  It  was  urged,  that  the  Sabbath  school  would  produce 
injurious  effects,  by  teaching  children  to  read,  but  more  particu- 
larly to  write.  The  Reverend  Mr.  C.  declared  it  to  be  as  pre- 
posterous a  measure,  to  attempt  the  reformation  of  society  by 
the  instruction  of  youth,  as  to  commence  building  a  house  at 
the  top  of  a  chimney.  These  objections  were  easily  answered, 
and  the  friends  of  the  measure  felt  themselves  warranted  in 
commencing  their  operations.  A  sum  of  money  sufficient  for 
this  purpose  was  soon  collected,  and  a  Sabbath  school  was  es- 
tablished, with  flattering  prospects  of  success.  Our  plan  was 
entirely  different  from  the  one  now  in  successful  operation  in 
this  country.  Now,  the  instructions  are  administered  by  the 
voluntary  aid  of  individuals,  who,  as  philanthropists,  desire  to 
promote  the  best  interests  of  their  fellow  creatures,  by  instill- 
ing into  the  minds  of  the  ignorant  those  principles  of  virtue 
which  will  reclaim  our  wandering  youth  from  ignorance  and, 
vice  to  intelligence  and  a  fitting  sense  of  their  obligations,  and 
as  Christians,  estimating  the  value  of  the  immortal  soul  and  the 
importance  of  the  enlargement  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom, 
would  lead  these  youth  to  a  knowledge  of  the  sacred  Scriptures, 
which  reveal  to  man  the  way  of  salvation.  But,  in  England, 
and  at  that  time,  when  those  institutions  were  in  their  infancy, 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     15 

we  were  under  the  necessity  of  hiring  teachers  at  a  stated 
salary.  We  opened  four  distinct  schools — two  for  boys  and  two 
for  girls.  Thus  our  youth  were  taught  the  Scriptures  and  the 
Catechism,  and  were  furnished  by  the  hand  of  charity  with 
decent  clothing.  I  acted  the  part  of  a  superintendent.  My 
custom  was  to  spend  the  intervals  of  worship  in  these  schools, 
from  eight  to  ten  o'clock  A.  M.  and  from  one  to  two  and  from 
six  to  eight  P.  M. ;  to  commence  with  prayer ;  to  sit  while  the 
instructors  heard  the  lessons ;  then  to  hear  the  Catechism  which 
had  been  committed  through  the  week  ;  and  to  close  the  whole 
with  a  brief  exhortation,  adapted,  as  far  as  was  in  my  power, 
to  the  capacities  of  my  youthful  auditors.  Great  care  was  taken 
not  to  wound  the  feelings  of  persons  of  different  denominations, 
and  the  scholars  attended  the  places  of  worship  desired  by  their 
parents.  God  was  pleased  to  smile  upon  these  labors,  and  I 
trust  they  were  blessed  to  the  salvation  of  many  of  the  chil- 
dren. 

About  this  time,  my  predisposition  to  remove  to  America 
was  much  strengthened,  and  I  began  to  take  some  measures 
preparatory  to  emigrating.  My  wife,  animated  by  that  affec- 
tion which  has  ever  characterized  her  since  her  connection  with 
myself,  assented  cheerfully  to  my  plans.  An  old  and  faithful 
friend  of  the  family,  Capt.  Furze,  informed  me  that  he  was 
soon  to  sail  for  America,  where  he  had  some  acquaintance,  and 
where  he  intended  to  take  up  his  own  residence.  I  thought  it 
expedient  to  put  into  his  hands  a  list  of  inquiries,  which  I 
deemed  of  importance.  At  these  you  will  probably  smile. 
I  can  only  find  an  apology  in  the  almost  necessary  ignorance  of 
an  entire  stranger  to  the  habits  and  customs  of  Americans. 
These  were  as  follows  :  "  What  is  the  salary  generally  offered 
to  clergymen  ?  Is  there  generally  a  glebe  attached  to  places  of 
worship  %  What  is  the  price  of  provisions  in  different  places  ? 
What  is  the  price  of  labor  ?  What  are  the  wages  of  servants  ? 
Would  a  school  be  likely  to  prosper,  and  where  ?  I  do  not 
care  in  what  part  of  America  I  settle,  if  the  climate  be  healthy, 
and  I  can  enjoy  Christian  society,  and  be  useful  as  a  minister  of 
the  gospel.  I  can  obtain  recommendations  from  all  the  min- 
isters in  Devonshire.  Please  to  hand  this  to  the  ministers  of 
the  places  where  you  may  be,  and,  though  I  am  a  stranger  to 


16  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

them,  I  doubt  not  their  readiness  to  give  you  satisfaction  as  to 
the  above  questions,  and  I  trust  the  time  will  soon  come  when 
I  shall  greet  the  generous  Americans  on  their  own  territory. 
Topsham,  May  3d,  1794.     S.  Blatchford." 

Early  in  the  year  1795,  I  received  a  letter  from  Capt. 
Furze,  which  called  for  the  following  reply,  addressed  to  the 
Church  of  Christ,  at  Bedford,  in  Westchester  county,  New 
York:  "To  the  Church  of  Christ,  at  Bedford.  Christian 
friends  and  brethren  :  Having  received  a  letter  from  Capt. 
Furze,  with  the  information  of  your  being  destitute  of  a  min- 
ister, and  of  your  desire  to  communicate  with  me  on  the  sub- 
ject of  my  settling  among  you,  I  feel  myself  bound  to  address 
you.  I  have  long  felt  a  desire  to  become  an  inhabitant  of 
America,  and,  with  a  wife  and  four  children,  partake  of  the 
blessings  of  a  country  distinguished  for  its  general  piety,  the 
excellence  of  its  government,  and  the  free  exercise  of  religious 
opinions.  Unlike  to  England,  the  principles  of  conscience  are 
not  overawed  by  a  bigoted  clergy,  but  every  Christian  Society 
can  fully  enjoy  that  liberty  wherewith  Christ  has  made  them 
free.  I  have  often  considered  the  decay  of  religion  as  keeping 
pace  with  the  extension  of  ecclesiastical  authority,  and,  surely, 
infidelity  and  profaneness  never  ran  in  a  wider  channel,  never 
rushed  in  a  more  impetuous  torrent,  than  at  present ;  never 
was  religion  more  controverted,  never  was  it  less  practised. 
Mankind,  to  avoid  preciseness,  have  fallen  into  licentiousness, 
and,  through  an  aversion  to  mysteries,  have  run  away  from  god- 
liness. I  should  have  embarked  last  spring,  but  did  not  wish 
to  go  on  a  plan  altogether  uncertain.'  It  may  be  necessary  to 
say,  that  my  religious  principles  are  Calvinistic,  and  that  I  have 
been  engaged  in  the  ministry  about  eight  years,  have  been  or- 
dained five,  and  was  educated  at  the  Dissenting  College,  at 
Homerton,  near  London.  Let  me  desire  you,  as  soon  as  con- 
venient, to  answer  the  above.  In  expectation  of  which,  I  re- 
main your  friend  and  brother  in  the  Gospel,  S.  Blatchford.' ' 
To  this  letter  I  received  an  answer  from  Dr.  Fleming  and 
Deacon  Taylor,  expressing  an  ardent  desire  that  I  should  visit 
them  as  soon  as  possible.  After  seeking  direction  from  the 
Father  of  Lights,  we  were  led  to  the  conclusion  that  it  was  our 
duty  to  remove.     We  accordingly  took  measures  for  the  accom- 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     17 

plishment  of  our  design.  I  determined,  therefore,  to  make  my 
congregation  acquainted  with  my  purpose.  After  mature  de- 
liberation, they  reluctantly  assented  to  a  separation.  There  is 
a  tie  which  unites  a  pastor  to  his  people,  which  cannot  be  sun- 
dered without  feelings  of  regret.  Letters  were  at  this  time 
written  to  London,  relative  to  a  passage  to  New  York.  We 
received  an  answer  that  there  was  a  vessel  bound  for  that  port, 
but  her  time  of  sailing  was  uncertain.  The  price  of  passage 
was  forty  guineas  per  head  for  adults,  and  half  that  amount  for 
children  and  servants,  together  with  freight  for  baggage,  ac- 
cording to  admeasurement.  On  account  of  the  extravagance  of 
these  terms,  and  of  the  distance  from  Topsham  to  London,  as 
well  as  the  uncertainty  of  the  time  when  the  vessel  would  sail, 
we  were  obliged  to  seek  some  other  conveyance.  It  was  then 
hoped  that  a  passage  might  be  obtained  on  more  reasonable 
terms  at  Bristol,  but  we  were  again  disappointed.  We  had,  at 
the  suggestion  of  Capt.  Furze,  laid  out  considerable  property  in 
goods,  which,  he  informed  us,  might  be  sold  to  considerable 
advantage  in  America,  and  he  kindly  offered  to  furnish  us  with 
what  specie  we  wanted  on  our  arrival.  It  was,  and  had  been 
for  many  years,  a  maxim  by  which  I  had  been  governed,  that 
if  Almighty  God  had  designed  us  to  fill  any  particular  station, 
His  Divine  Providence  would  open  the  way.  So  it  was  in  this 
case.  About  three  or  four  weeks  previously  to  this  time,  a  ves- 
sel sustained  considerable  injury  at  no  great  distance  from  the 
port  of  Topsham,  and  was  brought  in  thither  in  order  to  under- 
go repairs.  It  was  given  out  that  she  was  bound  to  America, 
and  I  accordingly  communicated  with  the  captain,  whose  name 
was  Lyon,  relative  to  my  sailing  with  him.  His  terms  were, 
however,  higher  than  those  proffered  either  in  London  or  Bris- 
tol, which  occasioned  much  hesitation  in  my  mind  about  ac- 
cepting them ;  and,  indeed,  I  was  doubtful  whether  to  under- 
take the  voyage  at  all.  But  I  had  gone  so  far  as  to  obtain  the 
consent  of  my  wife's  family  and  of  my  congregation,  and  had 
given  notice  of  my  intention  to  preach  my  farewell  sermon  on 
a  particular  day,  and  I  was  unable  to  determine  how  to  act.  I 
was  led,  however,  to  seek  the  direction  of  my  Heavenly  Father, 
and  with  fervency  to  pray  that  He  who  was  a  cloud  by  day  and 
a  pillar  of  fire  by  night  to  his  ancient  Israel,  would  condescend 
3 


18  THE   BLATCHFOBD  MEMORIAL. 

to  be  my  guide,  and  that,  if  it  was  His  will  that  I  should  leave 
my  native  shores  for  a  strange  land,  He  would  be  graciously 
pleased  to  direct  me  in  the  pursuit  of  my  object.  The  Sabbath 
at  length  arrived  on  which  I  was  to  take  leave  of  the  people  of 
my  eharge.  The  place  of  worship  was  crowded,  and  a  scene  of 
peculiar  interest  was  presented  by  the  children  of  the  Sabbath 
schools,  all  of  whom  attended  on  the  occasion.  My  text  was 
found  in  2  Corinthians,  chapter  5,  verses  9  and  10  :  "  Where- 
fore we  labor,  that,  whether  present  or  absent,  we  may  be  ac- 
cepted of  Him.  For,  we  must  all  appear  before  the  judgment 
seat  of  Christ."  My  own  feelings  on  this  occasion  may  be  bet- 
ter imagined  than  described.  A  weeping  audience — a  collec- 
tion of  about  two  hundred  children — a  separation  about  to  take 
place  from  those  to  whom  I  had  preached  for  five  years,  and 
from  children  whom  I  had  been  instrumental  in  gathering  from 
the  highways  and  hedges,  whose  temporal  and  eternal  welfare 
I  ardently  desired  and  sedulously  endeavored  to  ensure — 
awakened  within  me  feelings  to  which  I  had  before  been  a 
stranger.  It  was  with  difficulty  I  could  leave  the  place  of  wor- 
ship, owing  to  the  anxiety  of  friends  to  exj>ress  their  sentiments 
of  affectionate  regard.  In  the  avenue  which  led  from  the 
church  to  the  street,  I  found  the  children  of  the  Sabbath  school, 
many  of  them  weeping  aloud,  and  all  desirous  of  expressing 
their  sorrow  at  the  separation  about  to  take  place.  Several  of 
my  friends  accompanied  me  to  my  dwelling-house,  where  we 
were  soon  surprised  by  the  sound  of  the  voices  of  the  Sabbath 
school  children,  who,  in  front  of  the  house,  were  singing  the 
following  hymn : 

"  Blest  be  the  charity  divine, 
Which  tends  to  form  the  infant  mind, 
Which  puts  the  youth  in  "virtue's  road, 
And  points  the  path  that  leads  to  God. 

Erewhile,  in  ignorance  we  lay, 
Of  folly  and  of  vice  the  prey, 
Not  knowing  what  we  ought  to  do, 
How  evil  shun  or  good  pursue. 

Now  taught  to  know  God's  holy  will. 
His  just  commands  may  we  fulfil, 
His  Sabbath  keep,  his  name  adore, 
His  goodness  love,  and  fear  his  j>ower. 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D-     19 

Blest  be  the  charity  divine 
That  thus  instructs  the  tender  mind, 
Places  the  youth  in  virtue's  road 
And  leads  him  on  the  way  to  God." 

The  whole  company  was  deeply  affected.  As  yet  no  light 
was  shed  on  my  future  path  ;  but  God  soon  manifested  himself 
to  be  a  present  help  in  time  of  need.  In  the  evening  I  re- 
ceived a  message  from  Capt.  Lyon,  requesting  that  I  would 
call  and  see  him  immediately  on  business  of  importance.  I  re- 
turned an  answer,  that  I  attended  to  no  business  on  the  Sab- 
oath,  except  such  as  was  connected  with  its  sacred  duties.  The 
messenger  soon  returned  with  an  answer,  that,  from  the  nature 
of  the  business,  there  could  be  no  impropriety  in  my  comply- 
ing with  Capt.  Lyon's  recpiest.  I  accordingly  called  upon  him, 
and  found  that  his  mind  had  been  seriously  impressed  by  the 
exercises  of  the  day.  "  Your  first  sentence,"  said  he,  "  after 
you  pronounced  your  text,  produced  an  indescribable  effect 
upon  my  mind."  He  immediately,  even  with  tears,  expressed 
his  desire  to  convey  me  and  my  family  to  America  on  any 
terms.     Truly  I  had  reason  to  say : 

"  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way, 
His  wonders  to  perform." 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  sensations  which  I  experi- 
enced at  this  interposition  of  Divine  Providence,  which  so  un- 
expectedly rendered  our  plans  feasible,  and  so  wonderfully 
spoke  a  language  which  could  not  be  misunderstood.  It 
seemed  to  say — take  courage  and  go  forward.  The  proposal 
of  Capt.  Lyon  could  not  be  thought  of  without  gratitude  to 
God,  who  had  disposed  his  mind  to  an  act  so  truly  generous. 
On  my  return  home,  having  communicated  the  circumstance 
to  my  wife,  we  both,  feeling  the  faithfulness  of  Him  of  whom 
it  is  said,  "In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  Him,  and  He  shall  di- 
rect thy  paths,"  immediately  called  the  family  together,  when, 
kneeling  down  before  the  throne  of  Divine  Grace,  we  en- 
deavored humbly  to  acknowledge  the  goodness  of  God,  and  to 
commit  ourselves  renewedly  to  his '.watchful  care  and  merciful 
Providence. 

Capt.  Lyon   was  anxious  to  convey  me  and  my  family  to 


20  THE  BLATOHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

America  without  receiving  any  remuneration,  but,  as  I  could 
not  consent  to  this,  he  requested  me  to  name  the  price  of  pas- 
sage. As  I  would  not  consent  to  this,  he  proposed  twenty 
guineas  for  myself  and  the  same  amount  for  Mrs.  B.  As  for 
the  children,  who  were  four  in  number,  he  said  that  he  would 
adopt  them  as  his  own  during  the  voyage,  and,  of  course, 
would  charge  nothing  for  the  servant,  as  she  was  necessary  to 
take  care  of  the  children.  His  vessel,  he  said,  was  large  enough 
to  carry  all  my  baggage,  and  he  would  make  no  charge  for 
that.  At  the  sale  of  my  furniture,  Capt.  Lyon  bought  to  the 
amount  of  the  price  of  our  passage,  and  distributed  the  articles 
he  purchased  among  his  friends  at  Totness.  A  Sabbath  in- 
tervening between  the  time  of  which  I  have  been  speaking 
and  our  embarkation,  we  concluded  to  spend  it  at  Exmouth, 
about  six  miles  from  Totness.  Here  I  preached  twice,  and 
was  gratified  by  the  presence  of  several  members  of  my  late 
congregation. 

On  the  19th  of  June,  1795,  we  left  our  native  shores,  and 
committed  ourselves  to  the  guardian  care  of  Him  whom  the 
winds  and  the  seas  obey.  A  large  crowd  of  people  assembled 
on  the  hill  which  overlooked  the  sea,  and  long  continued,  by 
the  waving  of  hats  and  handkerchiefs,  to  manifest  the  affection- 
ate interest  which  they  took  in  our  departure.  As  we  receded, 
objects  on  the  shore  became  less  and  less  distinct,  until  lost  in 
the  distance.  During  the  voyage  my  influence  over  the  cap- 
tain and  crew  constantly  increased,  and,  on  the  Sabbath,  I  used 
regularly  to  preach  to  them  on  deck.  We  enjoyed  a  good  de- 
gree of  health,  excepting  that  I  had  a  slight  attack  of  inflam- 
mation in  the  face,  and  my  wife  received  a  severe  wound 
from  the  falling  of  my  portable  desk.  We  suffered  considera- 
bly from  want  of  water,  when  about  opposite  Newfoundland, 
and  had  just  concluded  to  steer  thither,  when  we  were  unex- 
pectedly favored  with  a  shower  of  rain,  and,  by  means  of  the 
sails,  we  caught  enough  to  supply  our  wants.  At  length,  on 
the  1st  day  of  August,  1795,  the  day  on  which  I  completed 
my  twenty-eighth  year,  we  arrived  within  the  Hook,  at  New 
York.  The  night  was  dark,  and  the  captain  had  concluded  to 
anchor  outside  the  Hook,  and  wait  for  a  pilot,  but,  before  he 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     21 

was  aware,  found  himself  abreast  of  Staten  Island,  having  se- 
curely, but  unintentionally,  passed  in  without  a  pilot.* 

With  my  wife  and  family,  I  immediately  went  on  shore, 
accompanied  by  Capt.  Lyon,  and,  having  left  my  family  at  the 
City  Hotel,  at  that  time  in  Water  street,  I  set  out  in  search  of 
Capt.  Furze,  who  had  given  me  his  address,  at  Mr.  William 
Sing's,  hardware  merchant,  whose  store  was  in  Hanover 
Square.  Mr.  Sing  was  at  his  house  in  Brooklyn,  but  I  saw  a 
young  man  of  pleasing  appearance,  who  expressed  himself 
much  gratified  at  my  arrival.  I  was  much  disappointed  to 
learn  that  Capt.  Furze,  on  whom  I  depended  both  for  resources 
and  direction,  had  left  the  city  two  days  previously,  for  Albany, 
and  that  his  return  was  very  uncertain.  For  my  present  ac- 
commodation, however,  I  had  been  recommended  for  lodgings, 
by  Capt.  Furze,  to  the  house  of  Mrs.  Stynetz,  in  Barclay  street, 
at  the  corner  nearly  opposite  the  Roman  Catholic  chapel.  The 
young  gentleman  above  mentioned,  together  with  Mr.  Sing, 
belonged  to  the  Baptist  denomination.  I  was  introduced  by 
them  to  the  Reverend  Dr.  Rodgers,  of  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, who  at  that  time  was  on  a  visit  to  New  York  and  was 
officiating  that  day  in  the  duties  of  the  Sanctuary.  He  kindly 
bid  me  welcome,  and  urged  me  to  preach  for  him,  but  I  de- 
clined. I  consented,  however,  to  assist  him  in  the  devotional 
exercises  of  the  evening  ;  and  this  I  was  enabled  to  do  with  a 
feeling  sense  of  God's  goodness,  in  the  preservation  of  myself 
and  my  dear  family,  during  a  voyage  which  lasted  forty-three 
days.  My  feelings  overwhelmed  me,  and  the  sensibility  of  the 
audience  awakened  a  sympathy  which  I  cannot  describe.  Sev- 
eral of  them  called  the  next  day  at  Mr.  Sing's  store,  in  hopes 
of  seeing  me,  in  order  to  proffer  their  services  in  enabling  me 
to  reach  the  place  of  my  destination — Bedford.  Mr.  Sing  ac- 
companied me  to  the  Custom  House,  where  the  duties  I  had  to 
pay  nearly  exhausted  my  finances.  I  was,  however,  amply  sup- 
plied with  money  by  a  providential  circumstance.  As  I  was 
walking  down  Wall  street,  I  was  accosted  by  R.  A.  Haim, 
Esq.,  who  had  lately  arrived  from  Totness,  having  married  a 

*  The  vessel — the  schooner  Alert — was  lost  on  her  return  voyage  and  all  hands 
perished. 


22  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

young  lady  of  that  town.  After  some  conversation  respecting 
my  voyage,  he  asked  how  I  was  off  for  money.  He  then  de- 
sired me  to  name  the  sum  of  money  I  wanted,  and,  agreeably 
to  my  request,  lent  me  one  hundred  dollars.  Thus  supplied, 
and  with  the  advice  of  Mr.  Sing,  I  engaged  passage  for  my- 
self and  family  to  Sing  Sing,  about  thirty  miles  up  the  Hud- 
son, and  about  twelve  distant  from  Bedford.  We  arrived  safely 
in  the  afternoon,  and,  after  my  baggage  was  landed  and  my 
family  safely  lodged  at  a  tavern,  I  started  in  pursuit  of  a  Capt. 
Hunter,  who  had  been  recommended  as  being  able  to  render 
me  such  services  as  might  be  necessary  for  my  accommodation. 
The  regret  which  I  felt  at  the  absence  of  Capt.  Furze  produced 
a  perplexity  and  a  dejection  which  I  could  scarcely  overcome. 
But  God  was  still  on  my  side.  As  I  was  walking  toward 
Capt.  Hunter's  house,  I  heard  a  voice  distinctly  pronounce  my 
name,  and,  looking  in  the  direction  from  whence  the  voice 
came,  I  saw  Capt.  Furze.  He  had  returned  from  Albany  the 
evening  before,  not  having  been  able  to  accomplish  his  busi- 
ness there.  This  was  truly  a  remarkable  Providence.  It  re- 
lieved my  embarrassment  and  soothed  my  feelings.  I  imme- 
diately returned  to  the  tavern,  accompanied  by  Capt.  Furze, 
and  had  the  pleasure  of  introducing  him  to  your  dear  mother, 
the  sensibility  of  whose  mind  was  of  no  ordinary  character, 
arising  from  the  delicacy  of  her  education.  The  Providence 
of  God,  in  causing  us  to  meet  with  Capt.  Furze,  led  us  to  place 
a  stronger  confidence  in  his  covenant  faithfulness,  and  we  were 
prepared  to  view  it  as  a  cup  of  consolation,  on  which  was  in 
scribed  "  Jehovah-jireh,"  in  characters  too  legible  to  be  mis- 
taken. It  was  presented  by  the  hand  of  paternal  and  sovereign 
goodness,  and  we  were  led  to  exclaim,  "  The  Lord  reigneth, 
let  the  earth  rejoice."  It  was  determined  that,  in  the  morn- 
ing,  I  should  accompany  Capt.  Furze  to  the  house  of  Dr.  Flem- 
ing, at  Bedford,  one  of  the  gentlemen  who  wrote  tome  in  behalf 
of  the  congregation.  He  was  a  scholar  and  a  gentleman,  and 
also  a  farmer  who  attended  to  the  cultivation  of  his  farm  in 
person.  Bedford  had  been  a  frontier  town  during  the  Revolu- 
tionary war,  and  had  suffered  from  the  depredations  of  both 
parties.  The  church,  built  of  wood,  and  unstained  by  a  single 
brush  of  paint,  and  unenclosed,  presented   an   appearance  of 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.      23 

desolation  exceedingly  affecting.  Houses  scattered  here  and 
there,  many  of  them  in  a  decayed  state,  led  me  to  apprehend 
that  the  situation  could  not  be  very  eligible  to  me  or  my  fam- 
ily. Suffice  it  to  say,  that  we  arrived  at  a  decayed  dwelling, 
into  which,  after  having  fastened  our  horses  under  an  old  shed, 
we  entered.  We  were  received  with  kindness  and  hospitality 
by  two  young  ladies,  who  were  peculiarly  neat  in  their  ap- 
pearance and  graceful  in  their  manners.  It  was  Saturday,  and 
the  custom  of  washing  their  floors  had  not  been  forgotten ;  and 
I  was  not  without  apprehension  that  the  wet  floor  would  pro- 
duce some  unpleasant  effect  upon  my  health.  Capt.  Furze 
having  left  the  room,  I  was  left  alone  in  conversation  with  the 
ladies,  whom  I  found  to  be  the  daughters  of  Dr.  Fleming.  Soon, 
an  individual  entered  the  room,  and,  proffering  me  his  hand, 
"  hoped,"  as  he  said,  "  for  better  acquaintance."  It  proved  to 
be  Dr.  Fleming,  who  had  just  returned  from  his  labor,  and 
was  dressed  in  a  manner  suited  to  his  occupation.  As  I  had  not 
been  introduced  to  him,  I  considered  him  to  be  a  common 
workman.  At  this  you  will  not  be  surprised,  when  you  rec- 
ollect the  rank  that  English  physicians  sustain,  and  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  same  class  of  individuals  in  the  populous  towns 
and  villages  in  this  country.  I  was,  of  course,  greatly  sur- 
prised, on  the  return  of  Capt.  Furze,  to  learn  that  this  person 
was  Dr.  Fleming.  It  was  upon  him  I  was  principally  to  depend 
for  introduction  to  the  people,  and  I  had  anticipated  finding 
in  him  a  person  of  an  entirely  different  appearance.  He  told 
me  he  was  very  sorry  I  had  come,  and  that  they  already  had 
hired  a  minister  between  that  congregation  and  the  one  at 
Poundridge.  I  told  him  I  was  exceedingly  surprised  at  so 
premature  an  engagement,  for  it  was  in  consequence  of  his  in- 
vitation that  I  had  determined  to  remove  from  England.  He 
said  he  wished  I  had  come  earlier.  I  told  him  that  if  he 
considered  the  rapidity  with  which  I  had  hastened  to  comply 
with  the  invitation,  he  would  rather  wonder  that  I  had  come 
so  early,  than  express  regret  that  I  had  come  so  late.  He  then 
asked  if  I  had  brought  any  testimonials.  I  replied  that,  after 
what  had  passed,  I  was  astonished  that  they  considered  these 
necessary,  but  that  I  had  them.  He  then  asked  if  I  had  called 
on  Dr.  Rodgers,  in  New  York.     I  told  him  I  had  not,  having 


24  THE   BLATCHEORD   MEMORIAL. 

had  no  letters  of  introduction  to  him,  and  did  not  know  such  a 
step  was  necessary.  I  then  inquired  the  name  of  their  clergy- 
man. He  told  me  it  was  Mr.  Abner  Benedict,  a  man  of  sound 
principles  and  of  fine  character,  and  that  his  engagement  was 
for  one  year.  Capt.  Furze  now  taking  his  leave  for  the  night, 
I  was  left  alone  with  strangers,  to  struggle  with  feelings  to 
which,  until  this  time,  I  had  been  an  entire  stranger.  Their 
intensity  was  indescribable,  and,  if  any  expression  moved  upon 
my  affections  from  the  prospect  which  I  conceived  to  be  before 
me,  it  was  this,  "  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken 
me?  "  Supper  was  now  soon  prepared  and  of  a  material  gen- 
erally admired  as  an  evening  repast  in  that  part  of  the  country. 
It  was  samp.  It  was  a  food  to  which  I  was  not  accustomed, 
and  my  head  was  soon  out  of  the  window.  The  hour  being 
come  for  retirement,  we  committed  ourselves  to  the  care  of 
Him  whose  eyes  never  sleep  and  whose  eyelids  never  slumber. 
In  my  private  devotions,  I  endeavored  to  seek  some  token 
for  good,  to  enlighten  the  darkness  of  the  prospect  before  me 
and  my  family.  I  traced  over  what  had  occurred,  and  what 
I  had  fondly  considered  as  the  indications  of  an  approving 
Providence,  but  I  could  not  dissipate  the  gloom  that  hung 
over  my  spirits.  My  eyes  were  held  waking,  and  my  imagina- 
tion ran  away  with  my  judgment,  so  that  I  had  not  the  under- 
standing of  a  man,  and  my  faith  grew  weak  from  my  reflecting 
upon  the  events  which  had  crowded  upon  me,  stranger  as  I 
was,  in  a  strange  land.  When  thinking  of  my  wife  and  tender 
babes,  I  was  overwhelmed  with  anticipations  pregnant  with 
distress.  I  presume  I  suffered  a  partial  delirium,  from  which 
I  was  aroused  by  leaping  from  my  bed  and  striking  my  head 
against  the  wall.  As  the  day  had  dawned,  I  dressed  and 
sought  the  open  air.  Well  do  I  recollect  a  retreat,  some  dis- 
tance from  the  house,  where  no  eye  saw  me  but  the  eye  of 
God,  no  ear  heard  me  but  His  whose  presence  is  everywhere, 
and  who  heareth  the  young  ravens  when  they  cry.  Here  I  en- 
deavored to  pom*  out  my  heart  to  God,  and  assuage  my  grief 
by  the  consolations  of  the  gospel.  Anxiously  did  I  call  to 
mind,  as  the  foundation  of  my  hope,  such  passages  as  these  : 
"If  ye,  then,  being  evil,  know  how  to  give  good  gifts  unto 
your  children,  how  much  more  shall  your  Father  which  is  in 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     25 

Heaven  give  good  things  to  tliem  that  ask  him."  "  Fear  thou 
not ;  for  I  am  with  thee  :  be  not  dismayed  ;  for  I  am  thy  God." 
But  all  was  in  vain.  I  was  like  a  mariner  at  sea  in  a  frail  boat, 
without  compass  and  without  chart.  The  mountain  wave  rose 
higher  and  higher  and  well-nigh  overwhelmed  me.  I  perfectly 
recollect  uttering  expressions  of  discontent  toward  God  and 
his  Providence,  so  foolish,  so  sinful  was  I.  I  said  to  the  Al- 
mighty— if,  for  want  of  zeal  in  the  cause  of  Christ  I  am 
brought  hither — if,  for  any  thing  Thy  pure  eyes  have  seen 
amiss  in  me,  I  am  brought  into  circumstances  like  these,  no 
congregation  to  bid  me  welcome,  no  pulpit  from  which  to  de- 
clare the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ — what  have  my  beloved 
family  done,  who  must  be  sharers  in  those  privations  and  dis- 
appointments in  which  our  voyage  has  resulted?  On  return- 
ing to  the  house,  I  found  myself  weak  and  exhausted.  It  was 
the  Lord's  day.  In  the  exercise  of  family  worship  I  had  more 
of  the  spirit  of  prayer,  more  encouragement  to  call  God  my 
Father,  and  a  greater  range  of  thought  than  I  could  have  dared 
to  hope  for.  It  afforded  a  sweet  relief  to  learn  hereby,  that 
God  did  not  treat  me  as  a  rebellious  child,  but  still  permitted 
me  to  look  upon  Him,  shedding  upon  my  afflicted  heart  the 
expression  of  His  paternal  kindness ;  and,  on  rising  from  my 
knees,  methought  I  heard  a  voice  say,  "  Stand  still,  and  see  the 
salvation  of  the  Lord."  We  were  soon  seated  around  the  table 
spread  with  the  bounties  of  Providence.  Dr.  Fleming  and  his 
family  were  neatly  attired,  and,  howsoever  forbidding  his  man- 
ners had  been  on  the  previous  evening,  they  this  morning  pre- 
sented a  perfect  contrast.  He  recommended  himself  by  a  po- 
liteness of  which  he  was  well  capable,  and  a  softness  of  expres- 
sion which  at  that  time  was  peculiarly  gratifying.  In  about 
an  hour  we  were  comfortably  seated  in  a  wagon  on  our  road  to 
the  church,  which  was  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  Doc- 
tor's residence.  When  we  arrived,  we  found  a  large  collection 
of  people  standing  on  the  outside  of  the  church.  To  the  elders 
and  several  others  I  was  introduced.  If  I  had  been  surprised, 
at  a  passing  glance,  at  the  exterior  of  the  building,  I  was  much 
more  so  on  beholding  its  interior,  where  was  neither  plaster, 
pew,  nor  gallery.  The  minister  indeed  was  accommodated 
with  a  pulpit,  while  his  hearers  sat  on  slabs,  supported  by  two 
4 


26  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

legs  at  each  end,  and  two  in  the  middle.  Upon  one  of  these 
I  sat  down,  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  clergyman.  At  length 
he  entered  and  passed  into  the  pulpit,  with  an  octavo  Bible 
under  his  arm.  His  countenance  betokened  much  Christian 
meekness  and  benevolence.  In  this  estimate  I  was  not  after- 
wards disappointed.  As  soon  as  he  was  seated  in  the  pulpit, 
my  friend  the  Doctor  ascended  the  stairs,  to  inform  him,  I  pre- 
sume, who  the  stranger  was  that  sat  on  the  slabs  below,  as  he 
arose,  and,  standing  on  the  upper  step,  kindly  invited  me  to 
sit  with  him.  For  several  reasons,  however,  I  declined,  but  I 
consented  to  make  the  last  prayer  and  preach  for  him  in  the 
afternoon.  During  the  intermission  between  the  services, 
many  of  the  congregation  repaired  to  a  neighboring  house, 
among  whom  were  Mr.  Benedict,  Dr.  Fleming,  &c,  &c.  I  was 
invited  to  accompany  them,  and  an  excellent  opportunity  was 
afforded  me  of  laying  before  them  a  statement  of  my  circum- 
stances, my  invitation,  testimonials,  &c,  &c.  Mr.  Benedict 
instantly  said,  that,  in  justice  and  propriety,  he  must  consider 
his  engagement  with  them  at  an  end,  and  that  he  could  not  in 
conscience  think  of  retaining  a  situation  that  so  evidently  be- 
longed to  his  brother  just  arrived  from  across  the  Atlantic.  A 
consultation  being  held  on  the  subject,  it  was  agreed,  that,  if 
the  congregation  at  Poundridge  would  accede  to  the  measure, 
both  the  pulpits  should  be  supplied  by  an  alternation  of 
services  by  Mr.  Benedict  and  myself.  This  was  a  pleasant  re- 
lief, and  I  looked  at  it  as  an  intimation  of  the  good  Provi- 
dence of  God  being  still  continued  toward  me.  The  exercises 
of  the  afternoon  were  peculiarly  acceptable.  Esquire  Mc- 
Donald, who  was  present,  kindly  offered  to  accommodate  me 
and  my  family  for  the  present.  I  accordingly  returned  in  the 
morning  to  Sing  Sing  landing  for  them.  The  awkward  situa- 
tion in  which  they  were  placed  rendered  my  presence  pecu- 
liarly desirable.  In  compliance  with  Mr.  McDonald's  kind 
invitation,  I  took  my  family  to  his  house  in  Bedford.  Several 
of  the  members  of  the  congregation  at  Poundridge  had  been 
present  at  church  the  preceding  Sabbath,  and,  through  them 
and  Mr.  Benedict,  arrangements  were  made  agreeably  to  my 
wishes.  These  were  completed  before  the  close  of  the  week. 
We  soon  discovered  among  the  people  at  Bedford  and  Pound- 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFOED,  D.D.     27 

ridge  many  affectionate  and  pious  individuals,  with  whom  we 
could  hold  familiar  and  pleasant  converse.  Some  inconveni- 
ences as  well  as  trials  of  feeling  had  to  be  encountered,  yet 
the  constant  assiduity  of  individuals,  and  their  kind  anticipa- 
tions of  our  wants,  will  ever  be  remembered  with  sentiments 
of  sincere  gratitude  toward  Him  who  led  their  hearts  to  such 
acts  of  beneficence.  Although  the  family  of  Mr.  McDonald 
were  highly  hospitable,  we  considered,  it  of  importance,  if  pos- 
sible, to  obtain  a  dwelling  of  our  own.  But,  where  should  one 
be  found,  where  all  were  occupied  ?  The  parsonage  had  been 
let  out  on  a  lease  that  would  not  expire  till  the  spring,  and,  as 
no  better  accommodations  could  be  found  than  two  rooms  and 
a  kitchen  in  an  old  unfinished  house,  we  concluded  to  remove 
thither.  I  bless  God  that  both  your  dear  mother  and  myself 
had  determined  to  be  content  in  such  a  state  as  God  might  be 
pleased  to  place  us  in  ;  nor  did  I  ever  witness  more  Christian 
fortitude  than  your  mother  displayed  on  that  occasion.  Our 
servant  girl,  our  faithful  Molly,*  was  almost  overcome,  and, 
knowing  the  comforts  which  your  mother  enjoyed  before  leav- 
ing England,  could,  not  help  exclaiming,  "  Oh,  Mem,  how  will 
you  ever  endure  it  %  "  The  rooms  were  unplastered  and  sided 
by  rough  unjointed  boards,  nailed  against  the  studs,  not  for  the 
purpose  of  keeping  out  the  cold,  but  for  the  nailing  on  of  the 
laths  when  the  owner  should  see  fit  to  do  so.  "We  pasted  paper 
over  the  crevices,  and  in  this  manner  enclosed  ourselves  in 
more  comfortable  apartments  than  we  had  anticipated.  We 
had  to  borrow  some  few  articles  of  furniture  which  could  not 
be  purchased,  such  as  a  table,  two  or  three  chairs,  &c,  &c. 
Indeed  I  had.  to  exercise  some  of  my  own  ingenuity.  I  made 
a  table,  together  with  two  settees,  one  of  which  last  we  still  re- 
tain as  a  memento  of  that  period. 

On  the  25th  of  October  following  our  removal,  was  born 
Harriet  Peacock  ;f  and  your  dear  mother,  for  whom  we  had 
felt  so  much  anxiety,  was  mercifully  supported,  and  made  to 

*  In  one  corner  of  the  family  burial  lot,  at  Oakwood  Cemetery,  Troy,  New  York, 
is  a  white  marble  headstone,  on  which  are  these  words  :  "  Mary  Smith,  aged  47, 
our  faithful  family  nurse  from  1*790  until  her  death  October  3d,  1810." 

f  Dr.  Peacock  was  the  family  physician  at  Totness,  England. 


28  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

experience  the  truth  of  that  promise,  "  As  thy  days,  so  shall 
thy  strength  be."  Surely,  my  dear  children,  the  mercies  of 
God  were  new  every  morning  and  fresh  every  evening.  Great 
was  His  faithfulness. 

At  the  first  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  within 
the  bounds  of  which  my  congregations  were,  I  attended,  with 
the  view  of  laying  my  testimonials  before  its  members,  and  en- 
joying the  counsel  and  countenance  of  that  body.  I  there  met 
persons  whom  I  shall  ever  remember  with  feelings  of  grateful 
emotion.  The  kindness  with  which  they  received  me,  a 
stranger,  can  never  be  forgotten  by  me.  Among  them  were 
the  Reverend  Messrs.  King  and  Close.  At  this  meeting  the 
following  was  entered  on  the  books  of  the  Presbytery  :  "  The 
church  at  Bedford  requested  the  Presbytery  to  appoint  the  Rev- 
erend Samuel  Blatchford  a  stated  supply  among  them,  till  the 
next  stated  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  ;  upon  which,  the  Presby- 
tery asked  Mr.  Blatchford  whether  he  was  acquainted  with  and 
approved  of  the  Confession  of  Faith,  Form  of  Government, 
Discipline  and  Directory  tor  the  worship  of  God,  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  the  United  States,  and,  upon  his  answering 
these  questions  in  the  affirmative,  the  Presbytery  did  appoint 
him  to  supply  at  Bedford  as  many  Sabbaths  as  would  be  con- 
venient." 

Early  in  the  succeeding  year,  1796,  I  received  an  invitation 
to  spend  a  Sabbath  at  Greenfield,  Fairfield  county,  Connecticut, 
where  was  settled  the  late  Reverend  Dr.  Dwight,  who,  by  a 
display  of  talents  of  the  very  first  order,  diligence,  a  fine  and 
cultivated  taste,  and  an  untarnished  character  for  piety  and  zeal 
in  his  Master's  cause,  had  secured  to  himself  a  high  reputation. 
My  preaching  in  this  place  elicited  from  the  church  and  con- 
gregation an  invitation  to  preach  for  them,  and  the  following 
communication  was  forwarded  to  me :  "  At  a  meeting  legally 
warned  and  held  in  the  parish  of  Greenfield,  the  1st  day  of  April, 
1796 — Daniel  Sherwood,  Moderator.  Voted,  unanimously,  to 
invite  the  Reverend  Mr.  Blatchford,  for  one  year,  to  preach 
for  said  parish.  Voted,  to  give  Mr.  Blatchford  £160  currency, 
for  his  services  for  said  year.  Voted,  to  give  Mr.  Blatchford 
$20,  to  defray  his  expenses  in  removing  to  Greenfield.  Hezekiah 
Bradley,  Society's  Clerk."      After  taking  the  advice  of  my 


THE   REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  29 

brethren,  and  spreading  the  whole  affair  before  the  throne  of 
Divine  Grace,  for  direction  in  the  path  of  duty,  I  came  to  the 
resolution  of  accepting'  their  invitation,  with  the  privilege  of 
being  bound  by  this  agreement  no  longer  than  six  months,  if 
anv  circumstance  should  occur  to  render  my  removal  desirable. 
During  this  period,  I  was  introduced  to  my  excellent  friend, 
Dr.  Dwight,  who  requested  me,  whenever  I  came  to  New 
Haven,  to  make  his  house  my  home.  I  was  present  at  the 
Commencement  at  Yale  College  next  ensuing,  and,  at  the  re- 
quest of  gentlemen  belonging  to  the  United  Society  of  White- 
haven and  Fairhaven,  which  pulpits  were  then  vacant,  I 
preached  for  them  a  few  Sabbaths,  by  exchange.  An  intimation 
was  then  given  that  it  would  be  desirable,  if  it  might  be  done 
consistently,  that  I  should  yield  my  engagement  in  Greenfield, 
and  take  into  consideration  the  wishes  of  the  people  thus  in- 
formally expressed.  This  request  I  thought  it  my  duty  not  to 
comply  with.     I  accordingly  continued  at  Greenfield, 

Early  in  the  year  1797,  I  received  the  following  extracts 
from  the  records  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Presbyterian  Society 
at  Stratfield,  Connecticut :  "  At  a  meeting  of  the  members  of 
the  Presbyterian  Society  at  Stratfield,  Conn.,  legally  warned 
and  held  at  their  meeting-house,  February  15th,  1797,  Joseph 
Strong,  Esq.,  Moderator,  a  motion  is  made,  whether  the  society 
wish  to  call  a  candidate  for  settlement  in  the  ministry.  Voted, 
they  do.  Voted,  that  Richard  Hubbell,  Deacon  Seth  Seelye, 
Stephen  Summers,  Aaron  Hawley,  Benjamin  Wheeler,  and 
Lambert  Lockwood  be  a  committee  to  look  out  for  a  candidate 
and  make  report.  Voted,  this  meeting  adjourn  until  Monday 
next,  at  4  o'clock,  P.  M."  "  February  20th,  1797.  Met  again, 
agreeable  to  adjournment.  Moderator  being  absent,  voted,  that 
Capt.  Amos  Hubbell  be  Moderator  pro  tern.  Motioned,  that, 
from  specimens  we  have  had,  we  admire  the  Reverend  Mr. 
Blatchford  as  a  preacher,  and  wish  for  further  opportunity  to 
determine  whether  it  may  not  appear  for  mutual  good  that  he 
take  charge  of  this  church  and  society  as  pastor.  Voted  unan- 
imously. Motioned,  that  our  committee  for  the  purpose  of 
looking  out  a  candidate  be,  and  they  hereby  are,  recommended 
to  said  Mr.  Blatchford,  with  directions  to  offer  him  at  the  rate 
of  $500  for  one  year,  commencing  his  labors  with  us  next 


30  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

spring ;  and,  further,  we  agree,  that  if,  after  his  being  with  us 
six  months,  we  do  not  mutually  covenant  with  him  on  some 
more  permanent  footing,  he  may  either  leave  us  then  or  con- 
tinue through  the  year.  Voted  unanimously.  Meeting  ad- 
journed without  day.  A  true  copy  from  the  records.  Lambert 
Lockwood,  Clerk." 

In  the  course  of  a  few  weeks  I  received  the  following,  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  Jeremiah  Atwater  :  "  New  Haven,  March  29th, 
1 707.  Reverend  Sir  :  The  united  society  of  Whitehaven  and 
Fairhaven  yesterday  had  a  meeting  to  consult  on  the  expediency 
of  obtaining  a  permanent  supply  of  the  gospel  ministry.  On 
a  consideration  of  the  subject,  they  expressed  their  approbation 
of  your  past,  and  unanimously  united  in  the  desire  of  your  fu- 
ture, labors  among  them.  As  they  wish,  however,  not  to  de- 
viate from  duty  by  interrupting  any  arrangements  you  may 
have  made  with  any  other  people,  they  consider  it  expedient  to 
express  their  wishes  to  obtain  your  ministrations  for  them  six 
or  twelve  months,  at  such  future  period  as  your  arrangements 
will  admit,  and  this  with  a  view  to  eventual  settlement,  in 
case,  on  future  acquaintance,  duty  shall  dictate  the  measure. 
Uncertain  how  far  it  would  be  proper  to  make  proposals  of  a 
more  particular  kind,  until  they  know  whether  you  have  ac- 
cepted or  dismissed  the  application  which  you  informed  our 
committee  you  had  under  consideration,  the  Society  have  in- 
structed us,  in  connection  with  Mr.  Jeremiah  Atwater,  to  ex- 
press to  yon  their  wishes  and  sentiments,  and  to  make  enquiries 
relative  to  your  engagement.  Should  our  enquiries  and  the 
conference  with  Mr.  Atwater  enable  us  to  represent  to  the 
Society  that  you  are  not  engaged  to  any  people,  and  the  time  it 
is  probable  you  will  be  at  leisure,  the  Society  will  address  to 
you  the  necessary  stipulation  for  support.  Wishing  you  the 
Divine  direction  and  extensive  usefulness  in  the  work  of  the 
ministry,  we  are,  Reverend  sir,  respectfully,  your  humble  ser- 
vants, Eleazar  Goodrich,  Ilezekiah  Hotchkiss,  William  Austin." 

The  wishes  of  the  people  at  New  Haven  were  again  urged 
upon  me,  and,  as  the  time  of  my  engagement  at  Greenfield  was 
fast  drawing  to  a  close,  it  became  necessary  for  me  to  decide. 
Accordingly,  after  a  mature  consideration  of  the  subject,  I  came 
to  the  conclusion  of  accepting  the  invitation  of  the  congregation 
at  Stratfield,  and  declining  that  from  New  Haven. 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     31 

My  residence  at  Greenfield  was,  for  the  most  part,  agreeable 
to  your  mother's  feelings  and  mine.  We  enjoyed  a  society  there 
which  was  truly  delightful.  It  formed  the  basis  of  friendships 
which  have  continued  to  the  present  time,  although  death,  the 
great  destroyer,  hath  entered  many  a  family,  and  torn  from  the 
domestic  circle  friend  after  friend.  Near  Greenfield  resided 
Captain  Smedley,  who,  on  hearing  of  my  arrival,  hastened 
thither  to  express  his  obligations  to  my  family,  and  to  recognize 
in  me  the  youth  who  was  the  agent,  on  the  part  of  my  uncle 
and  my  mother,  in  affording  him  relief  during  his  confinement 
at  the  house  of  Mrs.  Chenough.  Captain  Smedley,  it  will  be 
recollected,  was  one  of  those  gentlemen  who  was  assisted  in  his 
escape  to  Holland. 

At  Greenfield,  on  the  5th  of  January,  1797,  was  born  Samuel 
Milforcl. 

I  had  also  succeeded  the  Reverend  Dr.  Day,  the  present 
President  of  Yale  College,  as  instructor  in  an  academy  at  Green- 
field, and,  previous  to  my  formal  acceptance  of  the  invitation 
from  Stratfield,  I  made  some  stipulations  with  the  committee 
from  thence,  other  than  those  expressed  in  the  call — such  as, 
building  an  edifice  proper  for  an  academy,  as  I  was  desirous 
of  instructing  some  youth  in  classical  literature,  as  an  addi- 
tional means  of  support  for  my  numerous  family.  These  ar- 
rangements being  made,  I  removed  to  Stratfield.  I  succeeded 
in  my  plans,  and  the  school  flourished.  I  was  installed  by  the 
Association  of  Fairfield  East,  and  we  all  felt  happy  in  our  new 
situation.  We  occupied  a  house  situated  in  the  western  part 
of  the  town,  commonly  called  Stratfield  or  Pequonic. 

On  the  23d  of  April,  1798,  was  born  Richard  Milford. 

In  this  year  we  heard  of  my  beloved  mother's  death.  She 
died  in  the  hope  of  the  gospel,  and  is  doubtless  in  possession  of 
the  inheritance  of  the  saints  in  light.  We  soon  purchased  a 
house  and  lot  belonging  to  Stephen  Boroughs,  in  a  part  of  the 
town  called  Newfield,  afterwards,  by  act  of  the  legislature, 
called  Bridgeport,  belonging  to  the  same  Society. 

On  the  24th  of  May,  1799,  was  born  John ;  on  the  21st  of 
August,  1800,  Sophia ;  on  the  7th  of  December,  1801,  Frederick; 
and  on  the  7th  of  January,  1803,  George  Edgcumbe. 

In  January,  1804, 1  received  an  invitation  to  take  charge  of 


32  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

the  Presbyterian  churches  at  Lansingburgh  and  Waterford,  in 
the  State  of  New  York,  which  invitation  I  eventually  accepted. 
The  field  of  usefulness  here  presented  was  more  extended 
than  the  one  in  which  I  was  then  laboring,  and  the  means  of 
support  offered  were  more  ample,  which,  on  account  of  my  large 
family,  was  exceedingly  desirable. 

I  cannot  leave  this  part  of  my  narrative  without  making 
mention  of  my  gratitude  for  the  many  proofs  of  cordial  friend- 
ship with  which  I  was  eminently  indulged  by  the  ministers  and 
citizens  of  the  State  of  Connecticut,  as  far  as  I  was  known. 
The  Association  with  which  I  was  particularly  connected,  to- 
gether with  the  Western  Association  of  Fairfield  county,  were 
ever  ready  to  show  to  me  those  marks  of  regard  which  took 
from  me  and  my  family  the  idea  of  being  strangers,  and  greatly 
compensated  for  the  pain  which  I  felt  in  being  separated  from 
those  I  held  clear  in  the  land  of  my  fathers.  Drs.  Edwards, 
Trumbull,  Ely  and  Ripley,  (the  last  is  still  alive,)  together 
with  Messrs.  Eliot,  Stebbins,  Pinneo,  Rexford  and  Hunting- 
ton, (of  Middletown,)  also  Drs.  Perkins,  Lewis,  Burnet,  and 
many  others,  are  among  those  toward  whom  the  sense  of  obliga- 
tion must  remain,  while  kindness  can  make  any  impression 
on  my  heart.  Let  the  following  be  considered,  among  many 
others,  as  tokens  of  that  cordial  confidence  and  kindness 
with  which  I  was  regarded  by  my  brethren  :  At  the  Com- 
mencement at  Yale  College  in  the  year  1798,  I  was  presented 
with  the  honorary  degree  of  A.  M.  I  was  also  twice  ap- 
pointed by  the  General  Association  of  Connecticut  a  delegate 
to  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  I  was 
unable  to  attend  the  Assembly  when  I  was  first  appointed. 
I  considered  the  repetition  of  the  honor  in  the  year  1801  as  a 
mark  of  peculiar  confidence,  since,  at  that  time,  it  was  in  the 
charge  of  the  delegate,  if  the  Assembly  should  see  fit,  to  consider 
and  digest  a  plan  of  government  for  the  churches  in  the  new 
settlements.  The  Assembly,  according  to  the  plan  suggested 
by  the  Association,  appointed  a  committee  of  conference,  con- 
sisting of  the  Reverend  Drs.  Edwards  and  Mclvnight, 
Mr.  Hutton,  an  elder  from  Albany,  and  myself.  The  re- 
port, containing  the  wished-for  plan,  will  be  found  at  large  in 
the  Assembly's  proceedings  for  the  year  1801.     As  it  proved 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     33 

satisfactory  to  the  Association,  it  was  adopted  at  the  next  meet- 
ing of  the  Association,  and,  I  believe,  has  ever  been  consid- 
ered a  distinguishing  blessing  to  the  churches  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  It  has  promoted  harmony  and  secured  peace,  removed 
impediments  in  the  way  of  missionary  efforts,  and  exhibited  a 
fine  specimen  of  Christian  fellowship.  Alas  !  how  often  have 
such  lesser  differences  of  church  government  divided  Christians, 
and  torn  the  seamless  robe  of  Christian  charity,  which  should 
ever  remain  untorn  and  uninjured. 

The  call  presented  by  the  churches  at  Lansingburgh  and 
Waterford  was  unanimous.  I  agreed  also  to  take  charge  of 
the  Lansingburgh  Academy,  and  the  whole  of  my  salary  was 
$1200.  I  was  installed  by  the  Presbytery  of  Columbia,  on  the 
19th  of  July,  1804.  The  congregation  at  Waterford  had 
formerly  been  under  the  care  of  the  Albany  Presbytery ;  but, 
through  the  influence  of  the  Dutch  population,  a  Dutch  Re- 
formed church  had  been  built,  and,  by  way  of  compromise  be- 
tween the  Presbyterians  and  the  Dutch,  Mr.  Close,  then  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Hudson,  was  called  to  be  their  pastor.  The 
English  population,  however,  increasing,  and  difficulties  on  that 
account  arising,  Mr.  Close,  (who  was  an  excellent  man,  and  lived 
to  an  advanced  age,)  resigned  his  pastoral  office,  and  the  church, 
uniting  with  the  Presbyterian  church  at  Lansingburgh,  pre- 
sented me  a  call. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  1804,  was  born  Charles  Bayn- 
ham  ;*  but  He  who  gave  and  had  a  right  to  take  away  was 
pleased  to  remove  him  from  us  to  His  own  immediate  keeping 
on  the  18th  of  November  in  the  same  year. 

On  the  23d  of  November,  1805,  was  born  Ethelinda  Jane ; 
and,  on  the  1st  of  August,  1807,  was  born  George  Edgcumbe, 
2d. 

The  foregoing  narrative,  thus  left  incomplete,  was  continued  by  Thomas  W. 
Blatchford,  a  son  of  the  Reverend  Dr.  Blatchford,  in  the  form  of  a  letter,  addressed 
to  his  children,  which  he  prefaced  with  the  following  note:  "  Troy,  April  29th,  1848. 
To  T.  Wickes  Blatchford,  Samuel  T.  Blatchford,  John  T.  Blatchford,  and  Harriet 
W.  Blatchford.     My  clear  children:   Believing  that  it  will  be  interesting  to  you, 

*  Charles  Baynham,  Esq.,  was  a  friend  of  the  Reverend  Dr.  Blatchford's,  in 
Devonshire,  England.  He  subsequently  came  to  this  country  and  resided  in 
Bridgeport,  Connecticut. 

5 


34  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

if  not  now,  certainly  at  some  future  day,  to  know  something  more  of  your  grand- 
father than  is  contained  in  the  foregoing  most  interesting  narrative,  I  have  con- 
cluded to  add  a  few  particulars  in  the  form  of  a  letter  addressed  to  you.  If  the 
remembrance  of  those  in  whom  piety  and  learning  and  enterprise  unite  is  worth 
cherishing,  the  virtues  and  excellences  of  your  dear  grandfather  should  not  soon 
be  forgotten.     Your  affectionate  father,  Thomas  W.  Blatchford." 

Tims  far  your  sainted  grandparent  had  proceeded  in  his  auto- 
biography, when  death  terminated  his  earthly  engagements,  by 
summoning  him  to  scenes  of  unmingled  joy  and  heavenly  activ- 
ity. Your  aunt  Jane,  now  Mrs.  P.  M.  Corbin,  who  acted  as 
his  amanuensis  upon  this  occasion,  (for  the  above  sketch  was 
dictated  from  the  bed  of  death)  states,  that  the  closing  sentence 
recording  the  birth  of  his  sixteenth  child,  George  Edgcumbe, 
2d,  was  the  last  sentence  he  ever  dictated  upon  any  subject. 
She  says,  that  she  waited  for  him  to  finish  the  sentence,  but  he 
seemed  lost  in  thought.  After  a  short  time,  he  said  he  would 
stop  for  the  present,  and  go  on  again  bye  and  bye.  Although  he 
confidently  calculated  to  resume  and  complete  what,  after  much 
entreaty  from  all  his  children,  he  had  thus  begun,  his  Heavenly 
Father  had  determined  otherwise,  for,  in  less  than  thirty 
hours  from  this  period,  his  tongue  was  silent  in  death.  This 
circumstance  renders  the  closing  words  the  more  remarkable. 
It  seems  as  if  the  dear  Saviour,  whom  he  had  so  long  and  faith- 
fully served,  condescended  to  favor  him  with  a  little  foretaste — 
a  slight  glimpse,  as  it  were — of  those  joys  He  knew  he  was  so 
soon  to  realize,  and  thus  enable  him,  in  sweet  anticipation,  to 
dwell  upon  the  happy  meeting  about  to  take  place  with  his  own 
dear  ones  who  had  preceded  him  to  glory. 

You  will  perceive  that  he  brought  his  history  down  to  the 
period  of  his  removal  from  Bridgeport  and  his  entrance  upon 
the  laborious  duties  connected  with  his  settlement  in  Lansing, 
burgh.  Twenty-four  years  of  his  useful  life  are  thus  left  un- 
noticed, from  his  thirty-eighth  to  his  sixty-second  year. 

The  fact  that  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  Lansingburgh  were 
natives  of  Bridgeport  and  Fairfield,  and  were  already  well  ac- 
quainted with  his  character,  probably  conduced  to  his  removal  to 
Lansingburgh.  The  father  of  Mr.  Seth  Seelye,  the  present  senior 
elder  of  the  church  in  Lansingburgh,  was  one  the  of  deacons  of 
the  church  at  Bridgeport.      Mr.  Eli  Judson  was  from  Fairfield, 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     35 

and  his  brother,  David  Judson,  Esq.,  was  one  of  your  grand- 
father's warmest  friends.  But  the  gentleman  most  instrumental 
in  bringing  it  about  was  David  Allen,  Esq.,  also  from  Fairfield, 
whose  kindness  and  attention  were  always  unremitting,  and  in 
whose  death,  in  1825,  your  grandfather  sustained  a  severe 
loss. 

The  Academy  at  Lansingburgh,  among  the  oldest  endowed 
by  the  Regents,  had,  for  some  time,  been  in  a  declining  state, 
and  had  now  dwindled  to  almost  nothing,  chiefly  from  the 
want  of  a  competent  head — a  Principal  whose  talents  and  ac- 
quirements could  impart  confidence  to  the  public.  The  two 
churches  of  Lansingburgh  and  Troy  had,  since  their  organiza- 
tion in  1793,  been  united  under  the  ministry  of  the  Reverened 
Jonas  Coe,  afterwards  Dr.  Coe.  The  congregation  in  Troy,  in- 
creasing in  numbers  and  strength,  proposed  a  separation,  and,  it 
being  concurred  in  by  the  congregation  at  Lansingburgh,  in- 
vited Mr.  Coe,  in  1803,  to  give  them  his  undivided  services, 
which  he  did  until  his  lamented  death,  in  1822.  In  a  letter  I 
received  from  your  grandfather,  dated  August  2d,  1822,  he 
says :  "  I  presume  you  have  heard  of  the  death  of  Dr.  Coe.  His 
departure  is  felt  as  a  great  loss  by  the  congregation  and  his  nu- 
merous friends.  I  preached  his  funeral  sermon  by  request.  It 
is  supposed  upwards  of  three  thousand  persons  crowded  into  the 
church  and  that  there  were  nearly  as  many  without.  Twenty- 
live  ministers  were  present,  to  pay  his  memory  respect."  He 
was  a  most  estimable  man,  distinguished  for  his  faithful,  un- 
wearied performance  of  pastoral  visitation.  This  gave  him 
great  influence  among  his  people.  Between  Dr.  Coe  and  your 
grandfather  there  was  always  the  closest  bond  of  union  and 
friendship.  They  were  truly  brethren.  Mr.  Coe's  withdrawal 
from  his  charge  at  Lansingburgh  left  the  church  destitute  of  a 
pastor.  The  trustees  of  the  Academy  and  the  officers  of  the 
church  and  congregation  determined  mutually  to  improve  this 
period  and  seek  for  a  gentleman  whose  literary  and  theological 
attainments  would  enable  him  acceptably  to  discharge  the  duties 
of  Principal  of  the  Academy  and  pastor  of  the  congregation.* 

*  The  church  edifice  of  Lansingburgh  was  rebuilt  on  a  different  site,  in  1844. 
A  marble  tablet  was  inserted  at  the  left  side  of  the  pulpit,  in  the  new  building, 


36  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

A  Presbyterian  church  had  been  organized  in  Waterford, 
but,  from  feebleness,  was  not  sustained,  and  had  long  become, 
as  it  were,  amalgamated  with  a  Dutch  church  previously  or- 
ganized under  the  direction  of  the  Classis  of  Albany.  The 
Reverend  John  Close,  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  was  the 
pastor.  The  increasing  infirmities  of  age  compelled  him  to 
resign  his  charge  in  part,  at  least,  when  the  Presbyterian 
church  was  again  organized,  occupying  the  Dutch  edifice,  and 
receiving  pecuniary  aid  from  the  Dutch  members.  It  united 
with  the  church  and  Academy  at  Lansingburgh,  in  extending  a 
call  to  your  grandfather,  who  already  enjoyed  high  reputation 
as  a  preacher  of  the  gospel  and  an  instructor  of  youth.  Thus, 
in  reality,  three  bodies  united  in  the  enterprise — the  officers  of 
the  Academy  and  the  two  congregations.  The  following  are 
the  names  of  the  gentlemen  authorized  to  extend  the  invi- 
tation :  William  Bell,  Matthew  Harrison,  Thomas  Bassle,  elders ; 
James  Hick  ok,  David  Allen,  Elijah  Janes,  trustees.  Not  one 
of  them  is  now  living. 

Your  grandfathers  first  visit  to  Lansingburgh  was  per- 
formed in  the  winter  of  1803-4,  on  horseback,  in  company  with 
Mr.  Samuel  Penny,  then  a  merchant  of  Bridgeport,  and  his 
nearest  neighbor.  The  privations  they  endured  on  the  road 
were  very  trying,  and  long  afterwards  formed  the  subject  of 
many  an  interesting  story  in  the  family  circle.  They  were  four 
days  in  reaching  Lansingburgh. 

George  Edgcumbe,  2d,  whose  name  occurs  in  the  closing 
sentence  of  the  memoir,  as  having  been  born  August  1st,  1807, 
and  whose  death  your  dear  grandfather  seemed  to  be  contem- 
plating, when  he  so  abruptly  ceased  to  dictate,  leaving  the  sen- 
tence half  finished,  died  August  24th,  1808,  being  a  little  over 
a  year  old.  But  the  family  was  called  to  pass  through  a  much 
severer  trial  just  previous  to  this  event,  in  the  severe  and  pro- 
tracted sickness  of  Alicia  and  her  death.  She  died  on  the  21st 
of  April,  1808,  of  a  peculiar  disease  of  the  throat,  which  pre- 
vented her   from  taking  food  for  the  last  six  weeks  of  her  life, 


with  the  following  inscription  :  "  In  memory  of  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.  D.,  for  24 
years  pastor  of  this  church — Born  at  Plymouth  Dock,  England,  August  1,  1*767 — 
Died  in  this  village,  March  17,  182S.     The  memory  of  the  just  is  blessed." 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     37 

her  wasting  frame  being  sustained  by  nourishing  enemata.  Her 
sufferings  were,  for  the  most  part,  excruciating. 

When  I  notice  the  birth  of  his  Benjamin — as  he  loved  to 
call  his  youngest  son — Edgcumbe  Heath,  on  the  24th  of  March, 
L811,  the  record  of  his  seventeen  children  is  complete.  Eight 
of  them  went  before  him,  ready  to  welcome  him  to  the  abodes 
of  the  blessed.  Two  of  them  died  in  England,  five  in  Lansing- 
burgh,  and  one  in  Maryland.  Harriet  Peacock  died  in  her 
24th  year,  and  the  Reverend  Henry  Blatchford  in  his  34th  year. 
The  others  died  in  early  infancy,  except  Alicia,  whose  death  I 
have  already  noticed. 

Having  long  observed  the  difficulties  which  beginners  in 
Greek  experienced  from  the  want  of  a  good  Greek  grammar, 
with  an  English  instead  of  a  Latin  translation,  he,  soon  after 
his  settlement  in  Lansingburgh,  and  after  consulting  with  seve- 
ral friends,  especially  the  Reverend  Dr.  ISTott,  of  Union  Col- 
lege, undertook  the  task  of  rendering  into  English  the  Latin 
of  Dr.  Moor's  Greek  grammar,  deeming  that,  after  examining 
several  others,  the  best  of  which  he  had  any  knowledge.  Be- 
sides translating  it,  he  furnished  notes  to  it,  and  added  Dr. 
Ewing's  Syntax,  in  an  appendix.  A  large  edition,  2,000,  I 
think,  was  printed,  on  his  account,  in  New  York,  by  Collins  & 
Perkins,  in  1807.  This  translation,  in  the  time  of  it,  was  held 
in  considerable  estimation,  and  several  of  our  colleges  adopted 
it  as  their  class-book,  especially  Union  College.  After  a  while, 
however,  it  was  superseded  by  others,  but  it  is  believed  to  have 
been  the  first  attempt  to  teach  the  Greek  grammar  in  the  Eng- 
lish language.  The  fact  that  the  grammar  he  selected,  though 
improved  and  honored  by  another  translation,  (that  of  the 
Reverend  Peter  Bullions,)  is  still  among  the  most  approved 
grammars  now  in  use,  and  the  further  fact,  that,  in  this  country, 
at  least,  Latin  translations  are  nowhere  put  into  the  hands  of 
beginners,  are  an  honorable  tribute  to  the  correctness  of  your 
grandfather' s  j udgment . * 

*  In  addition  to  this  Grammar,  nine  sermons  and  addresses  of  Rev.  Samuel 
Blatchford  were  published,  as  follows:  1.  Sermon  on  "The  Nature  and  Necessity 
of  the  New  Creation,"  in  1792.  2.  Sermon  on  "The  Great  Duty  of  Universal 
Love,"  in  1793.  3.  Sermon,  "  The  Validity  of  Presbyterian  Ordination  Maintained," 
in  1798.     4.  "Address  to  the  Indians,"  in  1810.     5.  Sermon  preached  before  the 


38  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

In  1805  he  was  chosen  one  of  the  trustees  of  Union  College, 
in  the  prosperity  of  which  institution  he  always  took  a  very 
deep  interest.  Soon  after  his  election,  he  commenced  acting  as 
one  of  the  Board  of  Examiners,  in  company  with  the  late  Drs. 
Coe  and  Proudfit.  The  duties  of  this  position  he  continued  to 
discharge  until  a  short  time  before  his  death,  and  he  was  sel- 
dom, if  ever,  absent  from  his  post.  He  took  pleasure  in  these 
semi-annual  visitations,  and,  while  he  was  faithful  to  his  trust, 
he  was  uniformly  kind  and  courteous  to  the  students  under  ex- 
amination. These  examinations  afforded  him  the  opportunity 
of  becoming  acquainted  with  many  gentlemen  who,  in  after 
life,  distinguished  themselves  in  their  various  professions,  and 
of  forming  acquaintances  which  were  mutually  pleasant  and 
profitable. 

In  1824,  he  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  organization  and 
prosperity  of  the  Rensselaer  Polytechnic  Institute,  of  which  he 
was  the  first  President.  The  acknowledgment  of  Mr.  Van 
Rensselaer's  indebtedness  to  him,  "  not  only  for  the  constant 
encouragement  afforded,  but  for  wise  counsel  concerning  the 
detail  and  execution  of  the  plan  itself,"  was  handsomely  ex- 
pressed in  a  letter  received  from  Mr.  Tan  Rensselaer,  from 
Washington,  when  he  heard  of  his  severe  illness,  in  1828.  The 
letter  enclosed  a  munificent  donation,  "  not  as  a  remuneration 
for  services  rendered,  but  as  a  small  token  of  lasting  indebted- 
ness." I  was  present  when  the  letter  was  received,  and  wit- 
nessed the  effect  it  had  upon  your  grandfather's  feelings.  It 
could  not  but  be  grateful  to  him,  coming  from  such  a  source, 
and  accompanied  by  a  proof  of  friendship  so  substantial.  I  re- 
gret that  the  letter  cannot  now  be  found,  or  I  would  copy  the 
original  entire,  instead  of  drawing  upon  my  memory  for  an  ex- 
tract. 

In  1808  ,  Williams  College,  of  which  the  late  Dr.  Fitch  was 
then  President,  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Divinity.     He  felt  highly  honored  by  this  unsought  and  unex- 


Albany  Bible  Society,  on  "The  Excellency  of  the  Scriptures,"  in  1811.  6.  Ad- 
dress to  Soldiers,  in  1812.  7.  Thanksgiving  Sermon,  in  1815.  8.  Sermon 
preached  in  Hudson,  N.  Y.,  at  the  ordination  of  Rev.  Benjamin  F.  Stanton,  in 
1817.     9.  Sermon,  "  The  Sanctification  of  the  Sabbath,"  in  1825. 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     39 

pected  mark  of  respect  from  those  who  were  comparatively 
strangers  to  him. 

When  speaking  of  his  settlement  in  Lansingburgh,  I  ought 
to  have  mentioned  that,  for  four  years,  he  continued  unremit- 
tingly to  discharge  the  duties  of  Principal  of  the  Academy  and 
pastor  of  the  united  congregations  of  Lansingburgh  and  Water- 
ford — united  only  in  ministry,  not  in  government,  the  elder- 
ships being  distinct.  Such  constant  employment,  notwith- 
standing the  assistance  of  two  faithful  ushers,  proved  entirely 
too  arduous,  and,  besides,  left  him  but  little  time  for  pastoral 
visitation  and  attendance  upon  the  sick.  In  1809,  at  his  earn- 
est request,  an  arrangement  was  entered  into,  by  which  he  was 
to  spend  one-half  of  the  usual  amount  of  time  in  the  Academy. 
This  arrangement  continued  for  two  years.  By  a  subsequent 
arrangement,  he  engaged  to  spend  one  day  in  the  week  in  the 
business  of  instruction,  and  selected  Wednesday  as  the  day 
most  convenient  for  him,  his  weekly  lecture  evening  in  Water- 
ford  being  Tuesday,  and  in  Lansingburgh  Thursday.  In  1811, 
he  withdrew  entirely  from  the  institution,  except  as  a  trustee. 
He  was  elected  a  trustee  some  time  before  his  withdrawal  as 
an  instructor,  and  continued  to  act  as  President  of  the  Board 
until  just  before  his  death,  ever  maintaining  a  lively  interest 
in  an  institution  which,  mainly  through  his  instrumentality, 
had  again  assumed  an  honorable  standing  among  kindred  insti- 
tutions. 

When  first  settled  over  the  united  churches,  he  spent  the 
entire  Sabbath  alternately  in  each  village,  preaching  twice. 
After  the  relinquishment  of  half  of  his  time  in  the  Academy, 
he  divided  the  day  between  the  two  places,  giving  the  morning 
to  one  village  and  the  afternoon  and  evening  to  the  other,  and 
vice  versa  the  next  Sabbath.  His  practice  was  to  write  one  ser- 
mon a  week,  which  he  usually  delivered  in  both  places,  and  to 
preach  from  short  notes  or  extemporaneously  at  other  times, 
when  he  did  not  avail  himself  of  previous  preparation.  Satur- 
day was  his  study  day.  He  must  not  then  be  interrupted,  ex- 
cept for  some  very  important  consideration.  He  usually  went 
into  his  study  soon  after  breakfast,  and  spent  the  entire  day  in 
looking  over  authors,  &c,  not  commencing  his  sermon  until  he 
had  mastered  his  subject.     When  he  began  to  write  he  con- 


40  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

tinned  without  any  cessation  until  he  reached  the  "  improve- 
ment." This  he  frequently  left  unfinished,  except  the  "heads" 
of  remarks.  It  is  rare  that  any  one  of  the  many  sermons  he 
has  left  exhibits  any  marks  of  alteration,  any  interlining,  or  any 
change  of  expression.  It  came  at  once  finished  from  his  hands, 
and  fit  for  the  press,  as  far  as  it  went.  The  most  of  Saturday 
night  he  thus  spent  in  writing,  frequently  not  retiring  to  bed 
until  one  or  two  o'clock.  His  rule  was  to  finish  his  preparation 
when  he  began. 

His  habits  were  very  studious.  He  took  but  little  exercise. 
Most  of  his  time  was  spent  in  study.  History,  especially  an- 
cient history,  was  his  delight.  His  reading  was  never  of  a  light 
character.  He  abhorred  the  whole  class  of  novels,  and  for 
much  of  that  which  is  called  light  literature  he  seemed  to  have 
no  taste.  He  could  read  fluently  the  Greek,  Hebrew  and  Latin 
languages,  and  understood,  so  as  to  translate,  the  Sanscrit  and 
the  Arabic.  Of  the  Italian,  the  French  and  the  Spanish  he  had 
but  a  slight  knowledge.  He  could  translate  them,  but  not 
without  difficulty.  He  wrote  a  beautiful  hand  and  always 
prided  himself  on  his  penmanship.  He  could  write  sixteen 
different  hands. 

His  taste  for  the  fine  arts  was  above  mediocrity.  He  was 
very  fond  of  drawing,  and  has  left  behind  him  several  speci- 
mens of  his  skill  in  this  department,  which  are  very  well  ex- 
ecuted.    This  was  his  favorite  recreation. 

He  was  always  punctual  in  his  attendance  upon  the  judicato- 
ries of  the  church.  Being  a  strict  disciplinarian,  he  regarded  it  as 
an  imperative  duty  to  attend  all  the  meetings  of  Presbytery  and 
Synod,  allowing  nothing  but  providential  interposition  to  inter- 
fere. He  was  very  seldom  absent,  no  matter  how  considerable 
the  mere  inconvenience  or  how  great  the  distance.  By  his 
Presbytery  he  was  very  frequently  appointed  as  Commissioner  to 
the  General  Assembly.  He  was  chosen  Moderator  of  that  body 
in  1813;  and  the  next  year,  according  to  usage,  he  preached  be- 
fore it.  His  text  was  Daniel,  12th  chapter,  3d  verse.  In  1817, 
the  last  Moderator  not  being  present,  he  was  selected  to  preach 
the  opening  sermon,  and  took  his  text  from  Ephesians,  1st 
chapter,  21st  and  22d  verses.  His  familiarity  with  church 
government  and  his  thorough  acquaintance  with  the  proceed- 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     41 

ings  of  ecclesiastical  courts,  together  with  his  acknowledged 
judgment  in  all  ecclesiastical  matters,  made  him  a  sort  of  um- 
pire father  in  church  difficulties,  great  weight  being  always 
attached  to  his  opinions. 

His  general  health  was  remarkably  good.  He  had  some 
peculiarities  of  constitution,  some  idiosyncrasies,  from  which  he 
occasionally  suffered  inconvenience.  He  could  not  endure, 
without  sickness  or  fainting,  the  sight  or  smell  of  a  cat,  or  the 
taste  or  smell  of  cheese  ;  and  the  smell  of  vinegar  was  very  of- 
fensive to  him. 

His  health  began  to  fail  about  two  years  before  his  death. 
He  had  a  large  tumor  in  the  right  side  of  his  abdomen.  Most 
of  the  physicians  whom  he  consulted  pronounced  it  an  enlarged 
liver.  A. post  mortem  examination  proved  it  to  be  an  enormous 
expansion  of  the  kidney,  weighing,  when  removed,  fourteen 
pounds,  and  six  pounds,  after  evacuating  the  fluid  it  contained, 
which  was  a  sort  of  bloody  serum.  The  size  of  this  tumor,  in- 
terfering with  the  healthy  performance  of  the  various  functions 
connected  with  the  organs  of  digestion,  rendered  his  sickness 
very  protracted.  He  was  confined  to  his  room  for  about  six 
months,  and  mostly  to  his  easy  chair  or  his  bed.  He  suffered 
greatly  from  the  swelling  of  his  legs  and  body.  This  rendered 
him  very  helpless,  and  the  sympathetic  irritation  of  his  stomach 
was  so  great  that  he  could  retain  next  to  nothing  on  it.  I  copy 
the  following  from  the  last  letter  he  wrote  to  me,  and  the  last, 
I  believe,  he  ever  dictated,  with  the  exception  of  the  one  he 
wrote  to  Mr.  Peters,  respecting  the  Home  Missionary  Society, 
and  which  was  published  in  the  organ  of  that  Society  immedi- 
ately after  his  death  :  "  Lansingburgh,  January  4th,  1828.  My 
dear  Thomas  :  I  have  constituted  your  dear  sister  Jane  my  aman- 
uensis, with  a  view  of  communicating  a  few  matters  relative  to 
myself.  I  still  continue,  as  you  may  perceive,  in  the  land  of  the 
living,  if  this  land  may,  indeed,  deserve  the  appellation,  where 
sickness,  sin,  and  death  crowd  the  shores,  and  the  earth  is  filled 
with  corruptible  bodies.  I  still  wait  the  command  of  Him  in 
whose  hand  are  the  destinies  of  man,  and  feel  that  I  have  abun- 
dant cause  to  bless  God  that  I  am  not  exercised  with  acute 
pain,  and  have  long  intervals  of  ease.  Surely  the  means  you 
were  led  to  adopt  were  under  the  direction  of  Him  who  does 
6 


42  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

not  willingly  afflict  nor  grieve  the  children  of  men.  The  course 
which  yon  prescribed  I  am  still  pursuing,  and  the  nourishment 
which  I  take  agrees  excellently  well  with  my  stomach,  and  my 
inclination  to  it  is  as  good  as  when  you  left  us.  My  legs,  in- 
deed, continue  to  swell,  but  I  am  free  from  those  distressing 
spasms  to  which  I  was  liable,  and  I  am  become  a  stranger  to 
those  copious  bilious  discharges  which  you  witnessed  when  here. 
In  affording  me  such  relief,  the  Lord  enables  me  to  attend  to 
such  services  as  have  for  their  object  the  welfare  of  precious,  im- 
mortal souls  and  the  glory  of  God.  Sometimes,  I  am  enabled, 
with  great  enlargement  of  spirit,  to  speak  of  the  wonders  and 
mysteries  of  grace  to  small  classes  of  people,  and,  I  trust,  in 
some  instances,  not  without  effect  upon  them,  and  with  sensi- 
ble refreshing  to  my  own  soul.  It  is  delightful,  as  I  approach 
eternity,  to  have  an  evidence  or  two,  brightened  up  by  the 
light  of  God's  countenance,  and  the  sweet  influences  of  his  spirit, 
before  I  shall  be  brought  to  see  Him  face  to  face,  and  with 
whom  I  shall  be  everlastingly  satisfied,  when  I  awake  in  his 
likeness."  He  then  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the  baptism 
of  Dr.  Tucker's  son,  performed  by  him  on  his  sick  bed,  giving 
him  his  own  name.  This  was  the  last  time  he  administered 
this  ordinance,  and  the  whole  scene  was  described  as  one  of  sur- 
passing solemnity. 

Frecpiently  during  his  protracted  confinement,  and  when  his 
sufferings  were  not  too  great,  he  was  in  the  habit  of  addressing 
circles  of  from  five  to  fifteen  or  twenty  young  persons,  upon  the 
great  object  of  their  eternal  concerns,  accompanied  by  singing 
and  closing  with  prayer.  It  is  known  that  these  solemn  and 
interesting  seasons  were  blessed  to  the  conversion  of  several  of 
the  young  persons  thus  addressed. 

He  had  no  ear  for  music,  and  could  scarcely  distinguish  one 
tune  from  another,  yet  he  greatly  enjoyed  the  singing  of  others, 
especially  in  the  social  circle. 

Just  before  his  death,  your  aunts  determined,  without  his 
knowledge,  to  note  down  on  paper  observations  which  fell 
from  him,  from  time  to  time,  in  his  intercourse  with  those  who 
came  to  see  him.  We  always  regretted  that  this  was  not 
earlier  thought  of,  for,  at  times,  he  would  give  utterance  to 
sentiments  of  the  most  touching  and  sublime  character.     A  few 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHEORD,  D.D.     43 

only  have  been  preserved,  and  I  shall  finish  this  letter  by  tran- 
scribing these  detached  sentences. 

To  a  brother  in  the  ministry  he  remarked  :  "  In  the  gar- 
den of  the  Lord,  his  laborers  are  variously  occupied.  Some 
busy  themselves  in  planting  trees,  some  in  watering  and  culti- 
vating the  delicate  and  beautiful  flowers,  and  some  in  pulling 
up  weeds ;  and  thus  various  is  their  employment  in  erecting 
his  glorious  temple.  The  late  John  Flavel  preached  regularly, 
once  a  year,  to  a  congregation  forty  miles  from  his  place  of 
residence.  At  an  intermediate  place,  a  minister  asked  to  be 
dismissed  from  his  people,  because  his  labors  had  not  been 
blessed  to  the  conversion  of  sinners.  Mr.  Flavel  visited  this 
congregation  during  one  of  his  journeys,  and,  on  the  subse- 
quent evening,  requested  them  to  state  publicly  the  benefit 
they  had  derived  from  their  minister's  instructions.  One  said, 
he  had  been  relieved  in  temptation;  another  had  had  his  hopes 
brightened  ;  a  third  was  confirmed  in  the  faith ;  and  all  ex- 
pressed some  good  done.  The  minister  was  overcome  with 
joy  at  this  expression  of  satisfaction  on  the  part  of  his  people, 
and  said,  with  emotion,  '  It  is  enough,  it  is  enough.'  Mr. 
Flavel  then  inquired  of  his  friend,  which  he  thought  the  most 
honorable  employment — that  of  digging  the  rough  stones  out 
of  the  quarry,  or  trimming  and  preparing  them  for  the  build- 
ing." 

To  a  company  of  young  converts  who  had  just  been  received 
into  the  church,  and  who,  by  request,  visited  him  a  few  days 
before  his  death,  he  observed  :  "  Let  us  all  walk  in  a  straight 
way,  like  the  beams  of  the  sun.  They  turn  neither  to  the 
right  hand  nor  to  the  left.  The  people  of  God  have  prayed  for 
a  revival,  and,  when  they  saw  you  stand  before  the  altar,  a 
thrill  of  joy  went  to  their  hearts.  A  large  company  have  al- 
ready gone  to  Heaven.  Remember,  you  are  a  band  following 
after.  Soon  you  shall  meet  together  around  the  throne.  Some 
of  you  may  have  no  earthly  parent ;  but,  if  you  have  a  Father 
in  Heaven,  all  will  be  well.  '  When  my  father  and  my  mother 
forsake  me,  then  the  Lord  will  take  me  up.'  You  see  how 
much  I  suffer.  Bodily  health  is  truly  a  great  blessing,  but  it  is 
as  dear  Dr.  Watts  said,  when  dvinir — k  All  is  now  well  with 
me ;'  and  immediately  he  fell  asleep  in  Jesus." 


44  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

To  a  valued  member  of  his  congregation  lie  said :  "  We 
have  long  been  looking  for  you  to  come  out  from  the  world. 
In  former  times,  men  could  not  make  a  profession  of  religion, 
without  the  risk  of  having  their  goods  pillaged,  and  their  bodies 
burned  ;  but  you,  my  dear  sir,  are  not  called  upon  to  be  a  mar- 
tyr. It  is  the  tree  of  life  that  is  before  you,  and  all  you  have  to 
do  is  to  reach  forth  your  hand  and  partake  freely  of  the  fruit, 
for  there  are  none  to  molest  or  make  you  afraid."  Soon  after 
this  interview,  the  gentleman  alluded  to  united  with  the  church  ; 
and  he  has  long  been  a  ruling  elder. 

"  I  have  always  been  a  moderate  man,  or,  at  least,  I  have 
tried  to  be  so  ;  but,  in  some  things,  I  have  been  vastly  too 
moderate.  God  has  said,  '  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  Grod 
with  all  thy  heart ; '  but,  oh  !  how  often  have  I  suffered  a  little 
bit  of  the  creature  to  creep  in,  even  in  my  best  moments." 

"  Heaven  grows  brighter  and  brighter,  as  I  approach  its 
portals."  Then,  smiling,  he  continued  :  "At  times,  it  dazzles 
my  sight,  by  the  brightness  of  its  glory." 

One  of  his  elders  observed  to  him,  that  his  body  was  de- 
caying fast.  "  Yes,"  said  he,  smiling,  "  let  it  decay,  let  it 
waste,  no  matter  how  fast."  Then,  with  an  elevated  voice,  he 
exclaimed  :  "  I  am  ready.  Oh  !  the  righteousness  of  Jesus 
Christ ;  'tis  the  only  way  to  the  living  temple." 

To  another  of  his  elders  he  said :  "  Oh  !  I  am  truly  a  great 
sufferer ;  but,  if  I  can  evince  to  my  people  that  there  is  a  con- 
solation in  religion,  which  the  world  can  neither  give  nor  take 
away,  I  am  willing  to  suffer  anything.  I  am  but  one  of  the 
little  children  in  my  Father's  family ;  but  He  attends  as  quickly 
to  the  cry  of  the  babe,  as  to  the  expressed  wish  of  the  older 
ones,  and  is  just  as  ready  to  fly  to  their  relief,  as  a  father  pitiful 
and  kind." 

When  in  great  pain  he  said  :  "  Oh  !  that  I  could  speak  of 
my  mercies  with  as  much  energy  as  I  speak  of  my  distresses." 
Again  :  "  Oh !  what  shall  I  do  ?  The  Lord  knows  ;  and  should 
not  that  be  enough  for  me  ?  I  do  not  know  that  it  becomes  me 
much  to  enquire  at  all.  That  is  nature,  that  is  nature."  Then, 
with  great  firmness  :  "  '  All  the  days  of  my  appointed  time 
will  I  wait  till  my  change  come.''  Hush,  my  impatient 
spirit." 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     45 

At  another  time,  when  in  great  distress  :  "  But  it  is  all 
mercy  ;  and  what  would  I  have  more  ?  I  am  like  a  spoiled 
child.  If  I  am  not  dandled  on  the  knee,  I  am  continually  cry- 
ing out.  "What  must  I  do  ?  Not  contented  with  the  common 
fare  of  the  family,  I  must  be  cherished  in  the  arms  or  patted  on 
the  cheek." 

When  supposed  to  be  near  his  end,  he  said  :  "  I  shall  soon 
forget  everything  relating  to  time,  except  that  I  was  a  great 
sinner,  and  was  made  a  monument  of  grace." 

To  Mrs.  Bela  Redfielcl,  who  expressed  herself  distressed  by 
the  troubles  of  the  church  in  Troy,  he  observed  :  "  I  have  set 
aside  all  the  contentions  and  distractions  of  the  church,  and  look 
away  to  the  general  assembly  and  church  of  the  first-born  in 
Heaven.  You  have  got  a  new  pastor,"  (referring  to  Dr. 
Tucker) — "  be  careful  and  do  not  set  your  heart  too  much  on  the 
creature.  You  need  not  so  much  regard  the  streams,  while  you 
have  free  access  to  the  fountain  itself." 

When  feeling  very  languid,  and  thinking  he  was  near  his 
end,  he  said :  "  Don't  let  me  slip  away  without  telling  me  of 
it,  for  I  want  to  see  the  little  stream  I  have  so  soon  to  cross." 

On  waking,  and  appearing  much  agitated,  we  observed  to 
him  that  he  had  only  been  dreaming.     "  Yes,"  said  he, 

'  This  world's  a  dream,  an  empty  show, 
But  the  bright  world  to  which  I  go 
Hath  joys  substantial  and  sincere  ; 
When  shall  I  wake  and  find  me  there  ? 
Oh  for  some  bright  and  peaceful  bower, 
Where  sin  hath  neither  place  nor  power.' 

There,  there  will  be  none  of  these  sufferings ;  but  the  sweetest 
thought  is,  that,  in  Heaven,  not  a  shadow  of  imperfection  or 
frailty  will  pass  over  my  sanctified  spirit.  Oh  !  Eternity, 
eternity  !  Continually  advancing  from  pure  to  purity  itself — 
from  enjoyment  to  ecstacy." 

The  approaching  Sabbath  being  Communion  Sabbath,  he 
asked  :  "  Where  am  I  to  pass  my  Communion  Sabbath  ?"  Some 
one  said  :  "  Perhaps  in  glory."  "  Yes,  I  hope  so,  and,  more, 
I  expect  it.  Let  us  see,  to-morrow  is  the  preparation  day,  is  it 
not  8"  He  was  told — no — it  was  Tuesday.  "  Ah,  well !  that 
is  right.     God  does  all  things  well." 


46  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

Speaking  of  the  kind  attentions  of  his  friends,  he  remarked  : 
"  '  What ! '  said  our  blessed  Saviour,  when  in  his  agony — '  what ! 
Could  ye  not  watch  with  me  one  hour  ? '  Now,  I  have  more  mer- 
cies than  my  Divine  Master  had,  since  my  friends  give  me  no 
opportunity  to  complain ;  for  they  watch  by  me  all  the  while, 
every  hour." 

"  Peter  had  never  known  the  omnipresence  of  God,  had  he 
not  begun  to  sink ;  so  we  never  know  the  love,  mercy,  good- 
ness, and  power  of  God,  until  we  are  brought  into  some  serious 
difficulty." 

"  Oh  !  what  a  fullness  there  is  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ ! 
Enough,  enough,  for  all,  and  still  more.  I  was  forcibly  struck 
by  a  remark  which  I  once  heard  the  Reverend  Mr.  Reynolds, 
of  London,  make,  in  a  sermon  :  '  When  I  go  through  Leaden- 
hall  Market,1  said  he,  '  and  see  the  quantity  and  variety  of  the 
provisions  which  are  there  exposed,  I  wonder  how  it  can  all  be 
consumed  ;  and  then,  when  I  walk  through  this  vast  city  and 
contemplate  the  numbers  of  its  inhabitants,  I  wonder  where 
the  provision  is  to  come  from  to  supply  so  many  wants.'  And, 
now,  for  the  application.  Notwithstanding  the  immense  num- 
bers of  His  children  and  the  extent  and  demands  of  His  fam- 
ily, there  is  provision  enough  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  for  all ; 
yea,  and  for  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  more,  if  He  should 
see  fit  to  create  them.  The  poor  prodigal  was  right  when  he 
said :  '  How  many  hired  servants  of  my  father's  have  bread 
enough  and  to  spare.'  Oh !  for  a  spiritual  appetite."  Then, 
addressing  himself  to  one  of  his  sons,  he  continued:  "He 
will,  by  His  own  hand,  lead  me  to  his  table.  Yes,  He  has  ; 
and  more  than  once  too.  Oh !  my  son,  what  a  book  the  Bible 
is  !  what  a  book  the  Bible  is  ! " 

When  the  day  was  breaking,  and  the  light  began  to  make 
its  way  through  the  crevices  of  the  closed  windows,  he  ob- 
served :  "  How  like  the  dark  mist  of  early  day  are  all  our 
views  here,  even  the  best  of  them  ;  but,  when  the  sun  is  up,  it 
will  quickly  dispel  them  all,  and  we  shall  see  things  clearly. 
My  sun  is  rising  now,  and  soon  all  mist  will  be  vanished ;  but 
I  must  not  be  impatient." 

While  looking  at  his  feet,  which  were  very  much  swollen, 
and  which  seemed  about  to  mortify,  he  said :  "  The  Lord  doth 


THE   REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  47 

all  things  well.  It  is  all  just  as  it  should  be;  but,  to  nature, 
the  waters  of  Jordan  have  an  unpleasant  chilliness." 

"  Under  what  obligations  I  am  to  sing  the  royalties  ot 
grace.  I  say  '  royalties'  because  they  all  come  from  the  hand 
of  a  sovereign." 

A  female  friend  sent  to  him  a  request  that  he  would  pray 
for  her.  After  assenting,  he  continued  :  "  My  poor  prayers  ! 
my  poor  prayers  !  I  hope  she  is  a  Christian  and  has  an  inter- 
cessor before  the  throne.     Tell  her  to  go  to  Him." 

To  the  Reverend  Mr.  Butler,  Rector  of  St.  Paul's  church, 
Troy,  he  said:  "You  know  that  delightful  passage,  'The 
foundation  of  God  standeth  sure,  having  this  seal — the  Lord 
knoweth  them  that  are  His.'  "  "  Then,  your  faith  is  strong," 
said  Mr.  B.  He  replied,  with  great  emphasis  :  "  Yes ;  yes." 
"  You  believe  you  are  His  ?"  "  Yes,  oh  !  yes.  I  would  not 
relinquish  my  evidence  for  all  this  world."  "  You  trust  in  the 
merits  of  your  Redeemer  ?  "  "  Yes,  I  trust  alone  in  the  right- 
eousness of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

"I  have  noticed,  when  passing  up  and  down  the  North 
river,  in  the  steamboat,  that  there  is  always  a  great  interest 
manifested  among  the  passengers  to  get  a  good  view  of  the 
house  on  Catskill  Mountain,  and  each  one  wants  the  loan  of 
the  telescope ;  and,  if  there  wrere  twenty  glasses  on  board,  they 
would  all  be  in  requisition  to  examine  more  distinctly  the  dis- 
tant edifice.  So,  we,  who  are  sailing  down  the  river  of  life, 
have,  as  it  were,  a  mountain  house  to  contemplate — a  building 
of  God — that  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the 
heavens ;  and  we,  too,  blessed  be  God,  have  a  telescope  of  di- 
vine origin — the  word  of  God,  through  which* we  may  examine 
the  beautiful  building,  and  view  its  foundations,  and  admire 
its  structure  and  its  extent,  and  from  which  we  have  the  privi- 
lege of  learning  the  qualifications  necessary  for  admittance 
there.  Oh !  the  Bible !  the  Bible !  what  a  treasure  is  the 
Bible ! " 

To  his  youngest  son,  who,  in  an  hour,  expected  to  make  a 
public  profession  of  religion,  being  seventeen  years  of  age,  he 
observed:  "This  is  a  solemn  day  to  you,  my  son;  and,  al- 
though I  am  debarred  the  precious  privilege  of  leading  you  to 
the  altar   myself,  yet  I  bless    God  you  will  have  a  standing 


48  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

there.  Look  through,  I  beseech  you,  look  through  the  ele- 
ments to  the  body  and  blood  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Ever 
remember  that  it  is  not  a  mere  profession  that  constitutes  the 
hope  of  a  Christian,  but  the  blood  of  Christ.  Then,  give  your- 
self all  away."  After  making  a  short  and  affecting  prayer,  he 
threw  his  arms  around  his  neck  and  kissed  him. 

"If  any  of  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord  will  be  permitted  to 
sing,  '  Not  unto  us,  O  Lord,  not  unto  us,  but  unto  Thy  name 
give  glory,'  I  shall  be  among  that  number." 

To  a  very  aged  member  of  his  congregation,  a  merchant, 
who  had  never  yet  seen  his  way  clear  to  make  a  profession  of 
religion,  he  remarked  :  "  If  you  come  in  at  the  eleventh  hour, 
my  word  for  it  you  shall  not  lose  your  penny.  Life  is  short ; 
death  is  sure ;  it  behooves  you  to  be  diligent.  The  light  is 
almost  out;  the  wick  is  already  in  the  socket;  it  will  soon 
nicker  for  the  last  time.  It  is  a  pearl  of  great  price  that  is  hid 
in  the  gospel  field,  and  that  merchant  is  divinely  wise  who 
makes  that  pearl  his  own." 

"  My  flesh,  you  see,"  speaking  to  some  of  his  children,  "  is 
tailing  fast,  and  I  am  fast  going  down  to  the  grave ;  but,  blessed 
be  God,  I  can  look  beyond  without  one  distressing  fear.  I 
find  myself  on  a  rock,  when  trusting  to  the  righteousness  and 
blood  of  Christ;  and  I  think  I  can  set  my  feet  in  Jordan,  and 
not  be  afraid.  It  is  but  a  narrow  stream  and  may  soon  be 
crossed.  Oh,  what  a  sweet  privilege  to  stand  on  gospel  ground, 
and  look  within  the  veil.  If  I  did  not  do  this,  the  very  stones 
would  cry  out.  Yes,  it  is  sweet ;  and  the  higher  we  stand  on 
gospel  ground,  the  richer  are  the  beauties  we  behold.  I  can 
mount  a  little,  like  the  eagle ;  and,  like  the  lark,  I  can  chirp, 
though  feebly.  I  have  seen  the  lark  rise  from  the  green 
meadow,  singing  as  he  rose,  and  mounting  upward  until  he 
appeared  a  mere  mote  in  the  sunbeam.  I  could  not  but  think 
he  taught  me  that  it  was  my  own  fault  if  I  did  not  know  more 
of  the  sublimities  of  religion.  Oh!  for  heavenward  aspira- 
tions !  " 

"  This  is  sometime  sa  privileged  chamber.  I  must  believe 
that  the  Lord  is  here.  Oh  !  the  goodness  of  God  !  I  see  His 
mercy  in  every  thing — yes,  even  in  the  pain  I  suffer." 

"  Oh  !  what  a  glorious  plan  is  the  plan  of  salvation  !  Here 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     49 

I  am  now,  confined  to  this  poor  decaying  body  ;  and  soon  I  hope 
to  be  as  active  and  free  as  any  seraph  around  the  throne.  Look 
at  the  penalty :  '  In  the  day  that  thou  eatest  thereof,  thou 
shalt  surely  die.'     But  the  curse  is  made  a  blessing." 

One  morning,  being  very  low,  he  appeared,  for  some  min- 
utes, lost  in  deep  thought,  and  then,  suddenly,  broke  out  with 
much  energy  of  expression,  and  said  : 

"  '  Jesus,  my  God,  I  know  His  name, 

His  name  is  all  my  trust, 
Nor  will  He  put  my  soul  to  shame, 

Nor  let  my  hope  be  lost.' 

ISTo,  I  have  a  heavenly  confidence  in  His  faithfulness,  His 
ability,  His  love.  Oh !  my  children,  be  not  too  solicitous  for 
this  poor,  suffering,  dying  body.  I  have  a  glorious  view — a 
glorious  anticipation — of  what  is  in  store  for  me.  I  now  see 
Him  by  faith.  Soon,  oh!  soon,  I  shall  see  Him  face  to  face." 
After  a  few  moments'  silence,  he  added  :  "  Oh  !  I  have  had  a 
Pisgah's  view." 

Addressing  a  young  man  who  had  been  thoughtful  for  some 
time,  but  who  seemed  to  be  halting  as  to  duty,  and  whom  he 
had  before  urged  to  immediate  repentance,  he  said  :  "  L— — , 
my  dear  friend,  religion  is  something  or  it  is  nothing.  If  it  is 
nothing,  then  let  it  float  on  the  imagination,  like  a  bubble  on  the 
stream  ;  but  if  it  is  something,  remember,  it  holds  in  its  grasp 
the  keys  of  Heaven  or  of  Hell.  Embrace  it,  and  you  are  a 
child  of  glory.     Reject  it,  and  you  are  a  fiend  of  Hell." 

"  O,  thou,  that  dwelleth  in  the  heavens,  where  Peter  and 
Paul,  David  and  Manasseh,  and  all  the  redeemed,  ascribe  honor 
and  power  and  glory  to  the  Lamb,  shall  I  be  permitted  to  bow 
among  them  there  ?  O  Lord,  I  am  thine,  do  Thou  take  me  to 
thyself." 

To  Mr.  Seelye,  one  of  his  elders,  he  said  :  "  I  have  been 
wonderfully  supported  hitherto,  and  I  trust  I  shall  be  until  I 
get  home  to  my  Father's  house.  We  may  weep  at  our  tempo- 
rary separation,  but  we  shall  have  abundant  cause  to  rejoice 
when  we  meet  again.  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  gospel  I  have 
preached.  It  is  the  plain  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ."  He  then 
again  repeated  the  lines,  "  Jesus,  my  God,  I  know  His  name," 
&c.  "  I  bless  God  now,  that  I  have  been  kept  from  those  va- 
7 


50  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

garies  in  theology,  which  can  never  be  reconciled  nor  explained, 
in  which  the  glory  of  God  is  hid.  It  is  picking  at  the  shell  and 
neglecting  the  kernel." 

"  '  As  thy  days,  so  shall  thy  strength  be.'  I  am  weak,  very 
weak,  but  the  Lord,  by  his  assistance,  supports  the  very  staff 
he  gives  me ;  else,  it  would  drop  from  my  hand." 

One  morning,  when  considered  near  his  end,  he  thus  ad- 
dressed one  of  his  kind  physicians  :  "  Doctor,  I  am  waiting 
my  Father's  will,  I  am  watching  for  the  messenger  ;  and  now, 
my  dear  sir,  I  embrace  this  opportunity  of  telling  you,  my  hope 
is  fixed  on  the  righteousness  and  blood  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
That  gospel  I  have  so  long  preached  I  now  find  all  sufficient 
for  my  support.  Permit  me,  sir,  again  to  recommend  the  reli- 
gion of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  to  your  immediate  acceptance. 
Put  your  trust  in  Christ.  He  was  the  God  of  your  departed 
father,  He  is  the  God  of  your  sainted  mother,  and  His  everlast- 
ing arms  are  stretched  out  ready  to  receive  you  also  ;  and  they 
are  embossed  with  the  blood  of  the  Redeemer.  Reject  and 
perish;  accept  and  you  are  a  child  of  glory." 

To  two  brethren  in  the  ministry,  who  enquired  of  him  his 
feelings  in  view  of  death,  he  said  :  "  I  feel  a  rapture  in  my  own 
mind,  and  am  led  to  exclaim,  The  Lord  God  of  my  salvation  liv- 
eth.  I  feel  like  a  passenger  waiting  patiently  for  the  hour  of  de- 
parture to  arrive.  I  always  felt  unpleasantly  at  the  idea  of  leav- 
ing my  family  and  going  from  home  ;  but,  somehow  or  other,  I 
look  upon  the  journey  of  eternity,  if  I  may  so  express  myself, 
with  a  holy  delight.  I  feel  like  going  home.  Everything 
here  is  polluted;  hence,  it  cannot  be  the  Christian's  rest. 
Faith  and  hope,  as  sister  graces,  accompany  me  all  the  way, 
and  direct  my  eye  to  the  infinite  rest  above ;  and  soon,  they 
will  beckon  to  me  and  say,  Come  up  hither.  The  hope  of 
glory  which  Christ  has  formed  within  me,  is  by  the  glorious 
administration  of  the  spirit  of  grace." 

Upon  being  told  of  the  revivals  with  which  God  was  so 
extensively  blessing  His  church,  he  said :  "  I  bless  God  that  1 
have  been  spared  to  see  such  a  glorious  day  in  the  church. 
The  praise  cannot  be  of  man,  or  of  one  set  of  men.  It 
must  be  all  of  God,  for  the  work  is  not  confined  to  one  part 
more  than  another  of  the  field  ;  but,  in  every  portion  we  be- 
hold the  glorious  triumphs  of  the  Redeemer." 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     51 

To  some  young  ministerial  brethren,  who  said  they  felt  it 
a  privilege  to  visit  him  in  his  sick  chamber,  after  telling  them 
something  of  his  joys  and  anticipations,  and  most  affection- 
ately urging  them  to  be  faithful  to  their  trust,  and  remind- 
ing them  of  the  solemnity  of  their  ordination  vows,  he  said : 
"  Go  forth  with  the  standard  of  the  Cross.  Hold  it  up,  what- 
ever may  oppose.  Some  will  turn  away  from  its  attractive 
beauty  ;  but  still  go  on — discharge  your  duties  in  the  strength 
of  the  God  of  Jacob,  and  He  will  bless  you." 

Towards  the  close  of  his  life,  he  became  subject  to  severe 
paroxysms  of  pain  and  spasm.  After  one  of  these,  which 
seemed  peculiarly  severe,  he  said,  with  an  inexpressible  smile 
upon  his  countenance :  "  As  the  wise  men  of  the  East  were 
travelling  in  pursuit  of  the  babe  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  they  were 
guided  in  their  course  by  the  star  of  Bethlehem,  which  grew 
brighter  and  brighter  as  they  went,  until  it  stood  over  the 
place  where  the  child  lay.  If  I  am  permitted  to  have  the 
sight  of  that  star,  even  in  its  glimmering  state,  how  happy  am 
I.  It  is  this  star  that  strengthens,  supports,  and  encourages 
me  as  I  go  to  be  with  Christ.  But,  oh  !  how  shall  such  a  poor 
sinner  as  I  am  bear  the  sight  of  the  overwhelming  glory  of  my 
Divine  Redeemer  ?  I  cannot,  surely,  unless  sanctified  more 
and  more  by  the  spirit  of  His  grace."  Then,  with  great 
emphasis,  he  added  :  "  But  this  shall  be  so,  and  it  will  be  to 
the  praise  of  His  rich  and  sovereign  grace." 

Feeling  very  languid,  and  perceiving  his  feet  covered  with 
a  cold  sweat,  he  said :  "As  I  feel  the  chilling  drops  of  the 
spray  of  Jordan  gathering  on  my  feet,  how  could  I  meet  him 
who  is  falsely  called  the  king  of  terrors,  as  my  friend,  were  it 
not  for  the  rich  support  afforded  me  by  the  sovereign  grace  of 
Him  who  conquered  death,  hell,  and  the  grave,  when  He  rose 
triumphant  from  their  grasp." 

When  urged  to  take  a  little  nourishment,  having  taken 
nothing  for  some  time,  he  remarked,  cheerfully  :  "  My  eating 
days  are  almost  over,  but  my  banquet  days  are  all  before  me. 
Oh  !  Eternity,  Eternity  ! 

'  When  shall  I  pass  the  dreary  night 
In  the  bright  realms  of  heavenly  light.' " 


52  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

During  a  paroxysm  of  pain,  and  when  he  groaned  out, 
"Oh!  what  shall  I  do?  what  shall  I  do?"  he  suddenly 
stopped,  and  then,  composing  himself,  said  : 

" '  Does  it  behoove  me  much  to  know 
What  I'm  to  suffer  here  below, 
While  God  directs  my  longing  eyes 
To  the  bright  world  beyond  the  skies.'  " 

To  his  family  he  remarked  :  "  If  I  am  not  in  the  hands  of 
the  arch-deceiver,P  my  hope  in  the  covenant  grows  stronger 
and  the  star  of  Bethlehem  increases  in  brightness.  Aye,  and 
it  will  continue  to  do  so,  until  it  becomes  the  sun  of  righteous- 
ness to  my  enraptured  soul." 

When  taking  a  little  drink,  and  while  holding  the  tumbler, 
he  said  :  "  Oh  !  how  many  cups  of  mercy  have  I,  without  any 
thing  offensive  floating  on  the  top.  Shall  I  complain,  then,  if, 
occasionally,  a  little  bitter  is  mixed  with  it  ?  No,  Lord,  no. 
Thy  will  be  done." 

"  Prayer  is  a  bank  note  drawn  upon  the  great  proprietor — 
sure  pay,  no  failure." 

"  We  love  to  receive  letters  from  absent  friends.  The 
word  of  God  is  his  book  of  letters  to  his  absent  chil- 
dren." 

After  an  interesting  interview  he  had  enjoyed  with  Dr. 
Nott,  he  said  to  his  family,  when  they  returned  to  his  room : 
"  Oh!  was  there  ever  so  full  a  cup  of  mercy  poured  out  at  the 
feet  of  a  poor  dying  sinner  as  has  now  been  administered  to 
me. 

'  Lord,  I  am  thine,  but  thou  wilt  prove,'  "  «fcc. 

After  recovering  from  one  of  his  severe  paroxysms,  he 
said :  "  It  is  harder  crossing  the  stream  than  I  had  anticipated  ; 
but  the  beauties  of  Canaan  are  not  in  the  least  diminished  by 
the  tediousness  of  the  passage." 

At  another  time,  after  a  similar  paroxysm,  he  looked  up, 
and,  smiling,  said,  very  deliberately :  " '  He  hath  done  all 
things  well,'  was  a  label  inscribed  upon  His  crown  when  on 
earth,  and  all  the  malignity  of  earth  and  hell  combined  has 
never  yet  been  able  to  pluck  it  hence." 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     53 

The  above  is  enough  to  show  you  how  a  Christian  and  a 
Christian  minister  can  die.  For  two  or  three  weeks  after  he 
was  first  seriously  ill  and  when  he  began  to  realize  the  fatal 
nature  of  the  disease  under  which  he  was  laboring,  he  suffered 
a  good  deal  of  mental  darkness  and  depression.  He  was 
greatly  troubled  respecting  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection, 
but  it  pleased  his  Heavenly  Father  to  clear  up  all  his  doubts 
upon  every  subject,  and  after  this,  for  months,  he  had  no 
ground  for  dejection.  His  hope  was  always  bright,  his  faith 
always  strong,  but  he  loved  to  dwell  on  a  "  risen  Jesus,"  as 
he  used  to  express  himself;  and  few  individuals  were  ever  per- 
mitted to  enjoy  richer  foretastes  of  the  rest  remaining  to  the 
people  of  God.  For  twelve  hours  before  his  death  he  was  in 
a  lethargic  state,  and  scarcely  recognized  any  thing;  but  his 
work  was  all  done  and  well  done.  His  evidences  of  a  happy 
change  had  already  been  so  indelibly  recorded  upon  the  mem- 
ory of  friends,  that  no  expression  he  could  have  made,  had  he 
been  favored  with  his  senses,  would  have  added  any  thing 
to  their  assurances  that  his  hopes  of  Heaven  were  well 
founded. 

It  is  the  desire  of  my  heart  that  you,  my  dear  children, 
may  follow  him  as  far  as  he  followed  Christ,  and  that,  when 
our  earthly  course  is  finished,  we  may  meet  him  in  his  own 
happy  home  in  Heaven. 

That  this  may  be  the  case,  is  the  sincere  and  constant  prayer 
of 

Your  affectionate  father, 

Thos.  W.  Blatchford. 


From  the  Lansingburgh  Gazette,  of  March  25th,  1828. 

Died,  on  Monday  evening,  the  17th  inst.,  at  his  residence, 
in  this  village,  the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchfokd,  D.D.,  in 
the  sixty-second  year  of  his  age,  and  the  forty-first  of  his  min- 
istry. He  was  a  scholar  of  brilliant  acquirements,  and  a  sound 
divine.  As  a  persuasive  and  eloquent  preacher,  he  was  sur- 
passed by  few,  if  any,  in  our  country,  and  was  in  full  posses- 
sion of  all  those  endearing  virtues  and  Christian  graces  which 


54  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

adorn  and  beautify  the  human  character.  He  was  sincerely 
beloved  and  esteemed  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  died  in  the 
bosom  of  his  church,  in  the  full  faith  and  hope  of  a  glorious 
resurrection. 

The  following  biographical  sketch  of  this  venerable  divine, 
furnished  us  by  an  esteemed  correspondent,  cannot  be  unin- 
teresting to  many  of  our  readers  : 

Dr.  Blatchford  was  a  native  of  Plymouth,  in  England,  re- 
ceived his  education  at  Homerton  College,  emigrated  to  this 
country  in  1795,  and,  in  1804,  was  installed  pastor  of  the 
united  Presbyterian  churches  of  Lansingburgh  and  Waterford. 
This  office  he  filled  until  his  death — a  period  of  twenty-four 
years ;  and  it  is  no  small  testimony  to  his  worth,  to  say,  that 
he  retained,  during  that  time,  the  attachment  of  his  people  un- 
diminished, and  has  left  behind  him  a  name  that  will  long  be 
cherished  with  affection  and  regard.  He  was  a  tender  hus- 
band, a  kind  father,  and  a  warm  friend.  He  was  a  patron  of 
learning  and  a  zealous  advocate  of  the  charities  of  the  day. 
To  decision  of  character  he  united  the  urbanity  of  a  gentle- 
man, the  accomplishments  of  a  scholar,  and  the  virtues  of  a 
Christian.  He  possessed  sound  judgment  and  an  extensive 
knowledge  of  human  nature.  These  he  employed  in  sub- 
serviency to  the  peace  and  happiness  of  his  people.  As  a  the- 
ologian, his  knowledge  was  comprehensive,  and,  by  merit 
alone,  he  rose  to  distinction  in  the  church.  Whilst  he 
guarded  against  innovation,  both  in  doctrine  and  preaching, 
in  the  full  belief  of  the  fundamental  truths  of  the  gospel,  with 
persuasive  force,  he  preached  Christ  crucified,  as  the  sinner's 
only  hope. 

During  his  illness,  which  was  protracted  and  painful,  he  ex- 
hibited Christian  fortitude  and  resignation  seldom  equalled, 
and  to  all  who  visited  him  he  testified  of  a  Saviour's  love,  and 
exemplified  the  efficacy  of  a  Christian's  hope,  until  he  breathed 
his  last,  and  his  spirit  passed  into  the  immediate  presence  of 
his  Divine  Saviour. 

The  funeral  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Blatchford  was  attended,  on 
Friday  last,  by  a  large  number  of  both  clergy  and  people,  who 
assembled  to  mingle  their  sympathies  with  the  afflicted  family 
and  bereaved  people,  and  to  pay  their  last  sad  tribute  of  re- 


THE   REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  55 

spect  to  their  lamented  pastor.*  Upon  this  melancholy  occa- 
sion, a  sermon  was  delivered  by  the  Kev.  Dr.  Nott,  of  Union 
College,  which,  for  purity  of  diction  and  sublimity  of  senti- 
ment, must  have  been  one  of  his  happiest  efforts.  The  ser- 
mon was  such  as  funeral  discourses  ever  ought  to  be,  not  mere- 
ly an  eulogium  on  the  dead,  but  a  plain  and  powerful  appeal  to 
the  living.  It  contained  a  sound  and  lucid  exposition  of  the 
doctrines  of  the  gospel,  in  their  practical  application  to  the 
future  destiny  and  everlasting  well-being  of  man.  It  breathed 
forth  the  sentiments  of  evangelical  religion,  inculcated  the 
soundest  morality,  and  the  entire  purity  of  the  heart,  admon- 
ished us  of  the  uncertainty  of  life,  the  dread  certainty  of  an 
hereafter,  and  pathetically  urged  us  to  a  preparation  for  the 
great  and  untried  realities  that  eternity  will  unfold. 


Sermon  preached  at  the  funeral  of  the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D., 
at  Lansingburgh,  March  21st,  1828,  by  Eliphalet  Nott,  D.D.,  President  of  Union 
College. 

John,  14th  chapter,  28th  verse.  "  If  ye  loved  me,  ye  would 
rejoice,  because  I  said,  I  go  unto  the  Father." 

"For  to  rne  to  live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain,"  said  that 
venerable  man,  who  has  been  styled,  by  way  of  eminence,  the 
great  apostle  to  the  Gentiles.  His  words  bespeak  the  sub- 
limest  fortitude  as  well  as  the  most  fervent  piety.  Though 
aware  of  the  vanity  of  earth  and  the  brevity  of  life,  he  neither 
cherished  despondency  nor  indulged  repinings.     On  the  con- 


*  The  remains  of  the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford,  and  of  the  members  of  his 
family,  were,  at  their  deaths,  interred  in  the  old  burying  ground  at  Lansing- 
burgh ;  but,  surveys  having  been  made  for  a  contemplated  street,  to  run  directly 
through  the  graveyard,  the  remains  were  disinterred,  in  November,  1863,  and  re- 
interred  in  the  family  lot,  on  Laurel  Hill,  in  Oakwood  Cemetery,  Troy,  N.  Y., 
at  the  expense  of  Richard  M.  Blatchford,  but  under  the  direction  and  personal 
supervision  of  Thomas  W.  Blatchford,  At  that  time,  a  leaden  box,  six  inches  by 
four  inches,  and  an  inch  and  a  half  deep,  containing  an  autograph  letter  from  Dr. 
Blatchford  to  his  wife,  one  from  her  to  him,  the  names  of  their  children,  copied 
from  the  family  Bible,  a  copy  of  the  New  Testament,  and  the  silver  plate  from 
Dr.  Blatchford's  coffin,  was  deposited  in  an  excavation,  cut  in  the  foundation 
stone  of  the  monument. 


56  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

trary,  he  made  the  most  of  the  earth  in  which  he  lived,  and 
gathered  from  the  scenes  which  it  unfolded,  checkered  and 
fleeting  as  they  were,  the  essential  ingredients  of  celestial  plea- 
sure. And  yet  by  Paul,  though  it  was  Christ  to  live,  it  was 
accounted  gain  to  die. 

When  death  can  be  thus  accounted,  with  respect  to  our- 
selves, or  with  respect  to  others  beloved  by  us,  we  acquiesce  in 
it,  not  only  with  that  profound  submission  due  to  the  sov- 
ereignty of  God,  but  we  experience,  also,  a  consolation  of  a  dif- 
ferent kind.  To  virtuous  minds,  there  is  a  high  and  holy 
source  of  consolation  in  the  thought,  that  death  is  gain  to 
those  friends  who  are  wrested  from  us ;  and  this  is  the  source 
of  consolation  opened  by  Christ  to  his  afflicted  disciples,  in 
our  text. 

The  mere  announcement  of  the  fact  that  he  must  go  away 
had  filled  their  hearts  with  sorrow— a  sorrow  alleviated,  in- 
deed, by  the  promise  of  the  Comforter,  but  a  sorrow  that  could 
only  be  transformed  into  joy  by  the  exercise  of  that  intense 
affection  in  which  all  the  activities  of  the  bereaved  soul  are 
concentrated  and  absorbed.  "  If 'ye  loved  me, ye  would  rejoice, 
because  I  said,  I  go  unto  the  Father." 

To  beings  habitually  under  the  influence  of  carnal  and  self- 
ish sentiments,  these  words  may  seem  to  express  a  contradic- 
tion. And  ought  not  the  strength  of  love  to  friends  to  be  ac- 
counted rather  the  measure  of  grief  than  of  joy,  at  their  re- 
moval 2  Of  a  love  purely  mercenary,  doubtless,  it  ought  to  be 
so  accounted. 

But  there  is  a  love  of  a  higher  origin  and  of  a  holier  na- 
ture ;  a  love  not  selfish,  but  social ;  a  love  that  seeks,  not  its 
own,  but  the  felicity  of  its  object.  Such  was  the  love  of  God. 
Happy  from  eternity,  He  needed  not  the  praises  of  His  crea- 
tures. Benevolence  alone  could  have  prompted  him  to  people 
either  heaven  with  angels  or  earth  with  men.  And,  when  the 
latter  fell  from  their  first  estate  in  Paradise,  to  the  same  be- 
nevolence must  be  attributed  that  wondrous  plan  of  mercy  de- 
vised for  their  recovery. 

Neither  creation  nor  redemption  were  intended  to  bring 
any  accession  of  felicity  unto  God.  On  the  contrary,  both 
proceeded  from  that  spontaneous,  diffusive  benignity  that  de- 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHEORD,  D.D.     57 

lights  itself  in  imparting  existence,  and  in  communicating  hap- 
piness in  redeeming  from  misery. 

In  these  distinctive  acts  of  goodness,  there  is  a  transform- 
ing influence.  Beholding  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of 
Jesus  Christ,  his  redeemed  people  are  changed  into  the  same 
likeness,  and  feel  the  kindlings  of  the  same  celestial  charity. 

I  am  aware  there  are  those  who  cannot  receive  this  doc- 
trine. Selfish  and  mercenary  themselves,  they  attribute  to 
the  same  sordid  sentiment  the  seeming  charities  of  others. 
They  have  yet  to  learn  that  it  is  better  to  give  than  to  receive ; 
nor  can  they  imagine  how  a  being  should  be  supremely  devo- 
ted to  the  interests  of  another  from  other  motives  than  those 
of  personal  reward. 

You  remember  who  it  was  that  asked,  in  malignant  tri- 
umph :  "  Doth  Job  fear  God  for  naught?  "  The  peculiarity  of 
his  condition,  the  elevation  he  had  attained,  the  affluence  he 
enjoyed,  and  the  splendor  in  which  he  lived,  seemed  to  give 
countenance  to  the  imputation  that  he  did  not.  To  test  this 
question,  he  is  doomed  to  meet  a  sudden  and  an  utter  reverse 
of  fortune.  Stripped  of  his  property,  bereft  of  his  children, 
and  rendered  loathsome,  even,  by  disease,  you  behold  him 
next  an  object  of  derision,  habited  in  sackcloth  and  sitting  in 
the  dust,  and  yet  even  there,  and  while  communing  with  sighs 
and  tears  and  anguish,  he  utters  only  this  one  laconic  sen- 
tence :  "  Naked  came  I  out  of  my  mother's  womb,  and 
naked  shall  I  return  thither.  The  Lord,  gave  and.  the  Lord 
hath  taken  away  /  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  LordP 

In  that  sentence,  insidious  adversary,  there  is  contained  an 
answer  to  thine  inquiry.  The  event  has  demonstrated,  that, 
in  the  sense  that  thou  demandest,  Job  does  fear  God  for 
naught. 

Gain  constitutes  the  motive  that  prompts  the  covetous  of 
wealth  and  honor  to  serve  the  mammon  of  unrighteousness. 
But  the  service  of  redeemed  sinners  is  not  mercenary.  They 
devote  themselves  to  Christ  because  they  love  him,  and  they 
love  him  because  he  is  the  One  altogether  lovely,  the  chief 
among  ten  thousand.  In  the  presence  of  the  Infinite  and  Un- 
created, created  beings  appear  little  and  unimportant.  His  in- 
terests swallow  up  every  other  interest,  as  His  glory  ab- 
8 


58  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

sorbs  all  other  glory.  Self  is  forgotten  ;  personal  benefits  are 
forgotten ;  aud  God  becomes  all  in  all.  Hence,  said  Jesus 
Christ  to  His  disciples  :  "  If  ye  loved  m.e,  ye  would  rejoice,  he- 
cause  I  said,  I  go  unto  the  Father" 

That  they  did  love  him,  their  very  sorrow  testified  ;  but  it 
testified,  also,  that  that  love  was  neither  so  unmixed  in  its  na- 
ture, nor  so  intense  in  its  degree,  as  befitted,  on  such  an  occa- 
sion, the  disciples  of  such  a  Master.  In  that  sorrow  there 
was  a  tincture  of  human  weakness,  and  the  repinings  of  na- 
ture rendered  less  entire  that  resignation  which  grace  had 
otherwise  produced. 

The  security  the  disciples  felt  in  the  presence,  and  the  hap- 
piness they  derived  from  the  society  of  Jesus,  induced  a  per- 
sonal desire  that  He  should  abide  with  them  forever.  Such 
desire  is  consonant  to  nature,  and  many  a  desolate  heart  still 
appropriates  that  language  of  the  man  of  Uz :  "  Oh,  that  1 
hietv  where  I  might  find  him  !  that  I  might  come  even  to  his 
seat !  " 

What  bosom  in  which  grace  has  made  a  lodgment,  does 
not  even  now  expand  at  the  idea  of  abiding  in  His  presence 
and  beholding  His  glory,  who  was  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions, bruised  for  our  iniquities,  on  whom  was  laid  the  chas- 
tisement of  our  peace,  and  by  whose  stripes  we  are  healed. 
Still  consoling  to  His  church,  as  His  personal  presence  would 
be,  during  this  earthly  pilgrimage,  they  who  truly  love,  in 
place  of  sorrowing,  must  rejoice  that  He  has  gone  unto  the 
Father. 

This  event,  Christ's  ascension,  put  an  end  forever  to  His 
humiliation  and  his  sufferings  ;  and,  because  it  did  so,  it  ought 
to  excite  in  redeemed  bosoms  sentiments  of  joy. 

Up  to  the  time  of  the  final  assembling  upon  Olivet,  there 
is,  in  the  history  of  our  Lord,  much  to  depress  the  spirits  and 
sadden  the  heart.  From  the  manger  to  the  cross,  the  path  He 
trod  was  a  path  bedewed  by  tears  and  traced  in  blood.  Every 
indignity  was  offered  to  his  person,  every  dishonor  cast  upon 
his  office,  and  those  deeds  of  goodness  which  fixed  in  admira- 
tion the  eyes  of  angels,  awakened  only  derision  and  contempt 
in  the  breast  of  man.  At  length,  amid  the  quakings  of  Cal- 
vary, justice  inflicted  its  last  pang  and  the  agony  was  finished. 


THE  REVEREND   SAMUEL   BLATCHFORD,    D.D.  59 

Grateful  event !  at  the  remembrance  of  which  who  that  loves 
the  Eedeemer  of  the  world  does  not  rejoice — rejoice  that  His 
days  of  humiliation  are  ended,  and  that  He  will  hunger  and 
thirst  and  suffer  in  behalf  of  sinners  no  more — no  more  dwell 
in  obscurity  or  wander  in  exile — no  more  endure  the  curse  of 
the  law,  and  mourn  the  hidings  of  the  face  of  His  Father  no 
more. 

The  same  event  that  marked  the  termination  of  the  Sa- 
viour's humiliation,  marked  also  the  commencement  of  His 
triumph — a  double  reason  for  rejoicing,  to  those  who  loved 
Him. 

Before  the  world  was,  man's  great  deliverer  sat  upon  the 
throne  in  glory,  and  Him  the  angels  worshipped.  To  repair 
the  wastes  of  sin,  and  vindicate  the  sanctitude  of  justice,  He 
became  an  inhabitant  of  earth  and  even  a  tenant  of  the  sepul- 
chre. 

This,  however,  was  but  the  inceptive  act  of  a  vast  and  con- 
tinuous plan  of  mercy,  whose  unfoldings  were,  through  future 
ages,  to  fix  in  wonder  the  eyes  of  angels.  ]S"or  were  the  suf- 
ferings of  this  act  gratuitous.  On  the  contrary,  they  were 
linked  in  with  those  new  principles  of  government  about  to  be 
unfolded,  and  had  a  mighty  bearing  both  on  the  administration 
of  God,  and  the  destiny  of  moral  agents.  For,  ere  the  Son 
left  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  and  went  forth  among  the  habita- 
tions of  apostacy,  to  seek  and  save  those  that  were  lost,  it  had 
been  stipulated,  that,  redemption  accomplished,  He  should 
rise  and  reign  over  an  eternal  Kingdom,  into  which  His  ran- 
somed people  should  be  introduced. 

With  a  view  to  this  result,  His  sufferings  were  commenced 
and  consummated,  "  who,  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  him, 
endured  the  cross,  despising  the  shame"  and  who,  therefore,  "  is 
set  down  at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  God" 

And,  having  undertaken,  and  having  executed,  this  amaz- 
ing enterprise,  ought  not  Jesus  Christ  to  have  received  its 
stipulated  rewards?  Why,  then,  should  redeemed  hearts  be 
filled  with  sorrow  at  the  hastening  of  their  Redeemer's  tri- 
umphs ?  Would  his  own  disciples  have  retained  Him  longer, 
the  man  of  sorrows,  upon  earth,  whom  the  heavens  were  wait- 
ing to  receive  again  to  glory  ?     Would  they  have  postponed 


60  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

the  time  of  His  departure,  and  unstrung  those  harps,  already 
tuned  to  perform  his  ascension  anthem  %  Ah  !  weak  affection  ! 
Had  they  truly  loved  Him,  Him  only,  Him  supremely,  they 
would  have  sympathized  in  the  sentiments  of  angels,  and  sent 
up  from  earth  a  response  of  joy,  to  that  loud  acclaim  from 
heaven :  "  Lift  uj>  your  heads,  0  ye  gates  ;  and  be  ye  lift  up, 
ye  everlasting  doors  /  and  the  King  of  glory  shall  come  in." 

But,  if  the  ascension  of  Jesus  Christ  deserved  to  have 
been  regarded  as  an  occasion  of  joy,  why  should  the  departure 
of  those  who  have  gone  to  join  'Him  in  this  triumph  be 
contemplated  in  a  sadder  light. 

To  mere  nature,  death  is,  indeed,  terrible  and  gloomy — 
the  hour  of  final  separation.  At  the  outset  of  this  journey 
of  life,  we  find  ourselves  surrounded  by  kindred.  The  rela- 
tions of  father  and  mother,  of  brother  and  sister,  were  among 
the  first  relations  our  young  hearts  recognized ;  and,  amid 
the  early  pleasures  which  their  untiring  assiduities  occasioned, 
we  first  learned  to  feel  that  existence  was  a  blessing,  and  that 
it  was  good  for  us  to  be  here.  To  these  endeared  objects 
presently  were  added  other  objects  of  endearment — those 
selected  as  companions  or  beloved  as  friends — friends  whose 
characters  are  assimilated  to  our  own,  whose  conversation  and 
whose  smiles  give  zest  to  life,  in  whose  presence  we  forget  our 
cares,  and  with  whom  affection  covets  to  perpetuate  the  joy- 
ous scene,  and,  vain  as  this  world  is,  would  deem  it  gain  to 
abide  in  it  forever. 

Beguiled  by  the  prospect  that  seems  to  open  on  us,  and  in- 
dulging the  pleasing  hope  that  life,  though  not  perpetual,  will 
be  the  measure  of  a  lengthened  season  of  calm  and  rational  en- 
joyment, we  look  around  upon  our  friends  as  the  abiding  com- 
panions of  our  pilgrimage,  and  fondly  calculate  on  the  solace 
of  their  company  till  our  journey  ends. 

Fallacious  calculation  !  For,  as  onward  we  advance,  one 
after  another  of  those  on  whose  companionship  we  doted, 
are  smitten  from  our  side,  and  disappear  amid  the  wastes  of 
death.  Then,  alas  !  a  sudden  loneliness  comes,  and  our  deso- 
late hearts,  like  those  of  the  disciples,  are  filled  with  sorrow. 

Tears,  indeed,  befit  that  grief  that  they  bespeak,  and  they 
are  the  tribute  that  nature  pays  to  the  loss  of  friends.     But 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     61 

there  are  friends  at  whose  departure  from  us,  if  we  truly  loved 
them,  we  should  rejoice,  and  for  the  reason  assigned  by  Christ 
to  His  disciples — they  have  gone  unto  the  Father. 

Since  immortality  has  been  brought  to  light,  and  the  curse 
of  the  violated  law  cancelled,  death  is  no  longer,  to  redeemed 
sinners,  the  king  of  terrors ;  nor  is  the  grave  the  place  of  final 
desolation.  "  Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the  Lord"  was 
a  response  from  no  fabled  oracle.  It  has  been  verified  by  many 
an  exulting  spirit,  that  has  ascended,  shouting  victory,  along 
that  path  that  Jesus  Christ  has  traced  out  to  glory  ;  and  those 
gates  which  opened  to  give  Him  ingress  have  remained  open 
to  give  ingress  to  His  followers,  to  whom,  blessed  as  it  may 
have  been  to  live,  it  has  been  found  gain  to  die. 

At  the  moment  of  their  departure,  we,  prompted  by  the 
sympathies  of  nature,  received  their  benediction  in  anguish ; 
and,  having  left  us,  we  bedewed  their  very  ashes  with  our  tears. 
On  this  event,  the  translation  of  the  just  made  perfect,  what 
an  affecting  contrast  between  the  sentiment  indulged  by  their 
friends  on  earth,  and  their  friends  in  heaven.  The  blest  above 
are  no  indifferent  spectators  of  those  events  of  Providence  that 
are  developed  below.  They  applaud  the  fortitude  of  the  saints 
when  contending,  and  their  patience  when  suffering,  for  Jesus. 
They  watch  the  weary  pilgrim  as  life  declines  and  those  clouds 
gather  round  him  that  overhang  the  vale  of  death.  They  sym- 
pathize with  him  when  wasting  with  disease,  when  struggling 
with  pain,  and  especially  when  sinking  beneath  that  resistless 
power  that  turns  all  to  dust.  But,  when  the  struggle  is  over, 
and  the  scene  closes,  in  place  of  sorrowing,  they  rejoice.  Yes,  at 
the  very  moment  when  sighs  and  groans  only  are  heard  on  earth, 
there  are  songs  in  heaven.  Those  angels  who  once  rejoiced  at 
the  introduction  of  a  subject  into  the  kingdom  of  grace,  again 
rejoice  at  his  introduction  into  the  kingdom  of  glory — rejoice 
that  his  trial  is  completed,  his  probation  finished,  and  his  eter- 
nal salvation  made  secure.  With  an  accession  to  their  number, 
they  experience  an  accession  to  their  bliss,  and  repeat,  with 
additional  fervor,  their  hymn  of  praise.  For,  one  destined  to 
be  their  companion  was  dead,  and  is  alive ;  was  lost,  and  is 
found. 

In  the  death  of  friends,  Christian  friends,  selfish  and  short- 


62  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

sighted  creatures  that  we  are,  we  dwell  upon  our  loss  and  for- 
get their  gain.  As  if  the  grave  swallowed  up  forever  that  re- 
deemed dust  committed  to  it.  As  if  death,  which  only  crum- 
bles down  this  tenement,  crushed  its  deathless  tenant,  also,  be- 
neath his  disastrous  tread.  We  cling  with  a  convulsive  grasp 
to  the  objects  of  our  regard  when  summoned  to  glory,  struggle 
to  delay  their  departing  spirits,  and  sometimes,  even,  feel  the 
risings  of  unsubdued  regrets  that  we  cannot  recall  them  when 
they  are  finally  and  irrevocably  gone. 

Preposterous  conduct !  Ah  !  were  the  veil  lifted,  and  could 
they  now  address  us  from  that  hill  of  Zion  to  which  they  have 
ascended,  would  not  their  language  be,  like  the  Master's  lan- 
guage :  "  Weep  not  for  us,  but  weep  for  yourselms  and  for  your 
children.  Ours  is  the  vantage  ground  of  victory,  and,  if  ye 
loved  us,  ye  would  rejoice  that  we  have  gone  unto  the  Father." 
Though  not  from  them,  is  this  rebuke  not  pertinent?  Can 
love,  a  love  that  seeketh  not  its  own,  refrain  from  gladness, 
when  friends  and  kindred  are  made  blessed  ? 

What,  then,  mean  these  sighs,  and  tears,  and  lamentations, 
disconsolate  mourners  in  Zion,  whom  death  has  bereaved? 
Would  you  bind  the  objects  of  your  affection  to  sublunary 
scenes  forever?  Would  you  protract  the  season  of  their  suffer- 
ings, and  compel  them,  even  after  their  task  is  finished,  and 
their  passport  granted,  still  to  linger  on  this  alien  planet,  far 
from  friends  and  country,  and  from  sacred  Home  ?  To  assuage 
our  grief,  must  the  dead  in  Christ  return  again  to  suffering 
and  to  life  ?  Again  must  they  feel  infirmity,  struggle  against 
temptation,  and,  measuring  a  longer  term  of  vanity,  sigh  a 
second  time  for  rest,  from  their  bed  of  languishment  ?  Ah  ! 
no !  By  the  illumination  of  faith  we  correct  the  decisions  of 
feeling,  and,  at  the  remembrance  of  their  gain,  our  sorrow  is 
transformed  into  joy.  The  dead  in  Christ  return  to  suffering 
and  life  ?  Ah  !  no  !  Remain  departed  spirits  in  those  realms 
to  which  you  have  ascended,  mingle  your  praises  with  the 
praises  of  the  blessed,  and  rest  undisturbed  in  the  bosom  of 
your  God.  Presently,  we  shall  go  to  you,  but  yon  will  not, 
and  we  rejoice  that  you  will  not,  return  to  us. 

Infinite  wisdom  does  all  things  well.  Henceforth,  let  us 
lean  on  God  and  comfort  one  another  by  His  words  of  promise. 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     63 

"  In  my  Father's  house  are  many  mansions ;  if  it  were  not 
so  I  would  have  told  you.  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you. 
And  if  I  go  and  prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and 
receive  you  unto  myself;  that  where  I  am,  there  ye  may  be  also." 

O,  with  what  power,  when  heard  aright,  this  peace-speaking 
voice  falls  upon  the  crushed  orphan's  ear,  and  comes  home  to 
the  widow's  or  the  parent's  sorrow-wounded  heart!  It  is  the 
Master  who  said,  "  I  will  come  again."  And  came  he  not, 
when  those  loved  ones  whose  absence  we  mourn  were  sum- 
moned to  glory?  Thankful  that  our  departed  friends  are  safe, 
let  them  be  tears  of  joy,  if,  indeed,  tears  we  shed,  as  we  in- 
scribe their  epitaph  and  build  their  sepulchre.  Death  is  but  a' 
momentary  pang,  and  momentary  the  separation  it  occasions. 
Cheered  by  the  promise  of  the  future,  let  us  cease  to  brood 
over  the  bereavements  of  the  past.  The  redeemed  on  earth 
will  soon  be  joined  to  the  redeemed  in  heaven,  share  their  joys 
and  join  their  songs  of  triumph. 

But  there  are  other  lights  in  which  the  rupture  of  those  ties 
which  death  occasions  requires  to  be  contemplated. 

The  pastor,  as  well  as  the  husband  and  the  father,  has  been 
recalled.  From  the  manner  in  which  he  sustained  his  office, 
the  patience  with  which  he  bore  his  sickness,  and  the  resigna- 
tion with  which  he  met  his  death,  there  is  reason  to  cherish  the 
consoling  hope  that  he  has  gone  unto  the  Father.  And,  be- 
cause this  is  so,  there  is  reason  in  his  behalf  to  rejoice.  But, 
though  for  him  we  weep  not,  are  there  not  those  for  whom  it 
were  charity  to  weep  ? 

The  Shepherd  has  been  smitten,  and  his  bereaved  flock  pre- 
sents itself  before  us.  Him  God  may  have  removed  in  mercy  ; 
but,  whether  in  mercy  or  in  judgment  to  others,  is  known  only 
to  Himself.  What  means  this  afflictive  providence?  Why 
have  those  lips  that  once  published  salvation  been  prematurely 
sealed?  Is  the  work  finished,  the  sermon  ended,  and  the  har- 
vest past,  that  the  laborers  are  recalled  ?  Are  there  here  no 
more  souls  to  be  awakened,  to  be  converted,  to  be  edified  and 
trained  up  for  glory  ?  By  whom,  Lord,  shall  they  that  remain, 
and  are  ready  to  perish,  be  gathered  ?  Or  hast  Thou  said,  in 
thine  anger,  because  of  our  offences,  "  Ephraim  is  joined  to  his 
idols  ;  let  him  alone."     Sensible  of  our  unworthiness,  and  re- 


64  THE   BLATOHFOBD   MEMORIAL. 

membering  how  thine  overtures  of  mercy  have  been  treated, 
we  desire  to  bedew  these  desolate  altars  with  the  tears  of  con- 
trition, and  say,  in  behalf  of  all  who  worship  around  them — 
spare  thy  people,  and  give  not  up  thy  heritage  to  destruction. 

Has  the  pastor  of  this  church  gone  unto  the  Father,  re- 
called ere  he  had  numbered  the  days  of  the  life  of  man,  and 
while  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness  ?  In  this  act  behold  God's 
sovereignty.  He  employs  and  He  dispenses  with  human 
agents  at  his  pleasure.  Neithor  Aaron,  nor  Elijah,  nor  Paul, 
nor  Apollos,  were  any  thing  but  instruments  in  the  hand  of  the 
Almighty — instruments  which,  though  He  uses  them,  He  so 
uses  as  to  make  it  manifest  to  earth  and  heaven  that  He  needs 
them  not.  Nor  does  He  need  them.  Powerless  alike  is  he 
that  planteth  and  he  that  watereth.  It  is  God,  and  He  only, 
that  giveth  the  increase,  who,  baffling  human  calculation,  and 
crossing  human  hope,  says,  by  an  expressive  providence,  to 
His  church,  "  Trust  not  in  man,  nor  make  flesh  thine  armP 

Has  the  pastor  of  this  church  gone  unto  the  Father? 
What  greater  zeal,  what  increased  diligence,  then,  becomes 
those,  once  his  companions  in  office,  who  remain  behind.  On 
us  devolve  additional  cares  and  duties.  There  is  the  same 
labor  to  be  done,  and  fewer  hands  to  do  it.  Thenceforth, 
who  will  perform  those  services  that  our  departed  brother 
heretofore  performed  ?  Who  shall  execute  his  trusts,  or  guard 
and  feed  his  flock  %  Who  shall  stand  in  this  breach  which 
death  has  made,  and  sound  the  trumpet  of  the  watchman,  that 
the  sinner  here  may  be  afraid  and  the  hypocrite  in  Zion  trem- 
ble %  Or  shall  the  lips  of  the  living  as  well  as  of  the  dead  be 
sealed,  and  no  voice  of  warning  disturb  that  illusive  slumber 
in  which  the  carnally  secure  repose  ? 

To  the  teacher  and  the  taught  alike  this  providence  of  God 
is  replete  with  counsel.  He  who  hath  shortened  our  deceased 
brother's  term  of  service  and  of  suffering  says  to  us,  Be  ye 
also  faithful,  and  I  will  crown  you  with  a  crown  of  life.  Ye 
watchmen,  whom  God  hath  spared  and  still  spares,  receive  and 
lay  to  heart  this  admonition.  That  hearse  on  which  the  dead 
shall  be  borne  to  his  place  of  burial,  shall  soon  be  driven  to 
thy  door.  Soon  thine  eye  shall  be  as  dim,  thine  arm  as  nerve- 
less, and  thy  lip  as  silent,  as  his  whose  limbs  the  shroud  be- 
girts,  and  on  whose  breast  the  clod  presses.     Bestir  thyself, 


THE  REVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     65 

therefore — exhort,  rebuke,  admonish,  in  season  and  out  of  sea- 
son ;  and,  "  whatsoever  thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy 
might ;  for  there  is  no  work,  nor  device,  nor  knowledge,  nor 
wisdom,  in  the  grave,  whither  thou  goest." 

Has  the  pastor  of  this  church  gone  unto  the  Father  ?  Then 
what  account  of  yon,  ye  elders,  his  constituted  helpers,  mast  he 
have  rendered  ?  Faithful  to  your  own  souls  and  faithful  to 
the  souls  of  those  over  whom  the  Holy  Ghost  hath  made 
you  overseers,  has  he  borne  with  him  and  presented  in  that 
upper  sanctuary,  the  memorial  of  your  zeal  and  your  fidelity ; 
or  has  he  presented  a  memorial  the  opposite  of  this — a  me- 
morial replete  only  with  details  of  discipline  neglected,  of  ordi- 
nances profaned,  and  personal  duties  not  performed  ?  Stranger 
as  I  am,  I  affirm  nothing,  I  decide  nothing.  I  merely  agitate 
these  questions,  and,  in  the  prospect  of  the  judgment  day,  let 
conscience  answer  them. 

Ye  members  of  this  church,  communicants  at  the  table  of 
the  Lord,  to  whom  your  deceased  pastor  once  broke  that  bread, 
and  poured  out  that  cup,  which  are  the  symbols  of  the  body 
and  the  blood  of  Christ — having  gone  unto  the  Father,  what 
account  of  you  must  he  have  rendered  ?  Has  it  been,  think 
you,  an  account  of  your  blameless  and  exemplary  lives ;  of 
your  faith,  your  patience,  your  unanimity,  your  charity  and 
labors  of  love  ?  Or  has  the  recital  of  pagan  vices,  rather  than 
Christian  virtues,  swelled  its  details  ?  Is  the  history  of  your 
divisions  and  contentions,  of  your  recriminations  and  censori- 
ousness,  so  interwoven  with  the  history  of  his  ministry,  that  lie 
must  have  testified  on  high,  that,  in  the  church  he  served,  are 
scandals  not  wiped  away,  apostates  not  debarred  from  the  sacra- 
ments, and  wanderers  not  inquired  after  and  brought  back  un- 
to .  the  fold ;  that  discipline  is  no  longer  heard  of,  and,  though 
the  forms  of  religion  are  preserved,  its  power  and  vitality  are 
fled  ?  Again,  I  affirm  nothing,  I  decide  nothing.  I  merely 
agitate  these  questions,  and,  in  the  prospect  of  the  judgment 
day,  let  conscience  answer  them. 

Ye  sinners  in  this  congregation ;  heads  of  families ;  mem- 
bers of  families  ;  parents  living  without  prayer  ;  children  with- 
out obedience  ;  transgressors  without  repentance  ;  having  so 
long  preached  to  you  in   public,  and  so  often  conversed  with 
9 


66  THE  BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

you  in  private,  now  that  your  pastor  has  been  called  to  give 
an  account  of  his  intercourse  with  each  of  you,  man  by  man, 
what  account  must  that  have  been,  think  you,  and  how 
must  he  have  answered  each  solemn  interrogatory  concern- 
ing the  state  of  those  souls  of  yours  over  which  he  had  been 
placed  a  watchman  ?  Must  he  not,  returning  his  commission 
to  his  Master,  have  said,  in  regard  to  this  portion  of  his 
charge — "  Lord,  who  hath  believed  our  report  and  to  whom 
hath  the  arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed  ?  Acting  as  thine 
embassador,  I  have  published  to  them  thy  gospel ;  but  I  have 
published  it  in  vain.  In  vain  I  have  told  them  of  thy  love,  of 
thy  sufferings,  and  of  thy  death.  I  have  told  them  of  thy 
resurrection  and  of  thy  ascension  in  vain.  They  would  none 
of  thy  counsels  and  slighted  all  thy  reproofs." 

Be  his  account  what  it  may,  it  has  been  already  rendered  ; 
and,  so  far  as  his  own  ministry  is  concerned,  it  is  final.  If 
you  have  been  deaf  to  his  warnings,  if  you  have  disregarded 
his  invitations,  and  poured  contempt  upon  those  overtures  of 
mercy  of  which  he  was  the  bearer,  the  guilt  thereof  rests 
upon  your  consciences  and  you  shall  answer  it  to  God. 

But,  waiving  further  remark  upon  his  labors,  how  has  the 
suspension  of  those  labors  been  improved  ?  Has  it  produced 
those  effects  that  such  a  providence  is  calculated  to  produce  ? 
For  a  time,  God  addressed  you  by  his  voice,  and  you  attended 
not ;  and  has  that  expressive  silence  which  ensued  been  more 
attended  to  ?  Has  privation  quickened  desire  for  the  restora- 
tion of  the  service  of  the  sanctuary  ?  On  the  Lord's  day  morn- 
ing, as  your  families  have  dispersed,  and  your  children  wan- 
dered from  altar  to  altar,  have  you,  like  the  exiled  Israelite, 
hung  your  harps  upon  the  willows  and  sighed  to  return  to  this 
house  of  God  ? 

Death,  always  impressive  and  instructive,  is,  in  the  instance 
now  before  us,  particularly  so.  Your  pastor,  enfeebled  by  dis- 
ease, for  a  season  withdrew,  but  returned  hither.  And  why  ? 
Let  the  event  answer.  That  he  might  die  among  3^011.  This 
was  his  errand.  His  other  work  was  already  done.  God  had 
no  further  public  message  to  be  communicated  by  him.  Hence, 
though  he  appeared  in  your  public  assemblies,  he  addressed 
you  not.     But,  though  he  was  denied  this  privilege,  those  who 


THE  BEVEREND  SAMUEL  BLATCHFORD,  D.D.     67 

visited  his  bed  of  sickness  can  bear  him  witness  how  tenderly 
he  felt  for  you,  how  affectionately  he  spoke  of  you,  and  with 
what  paternal  care  he  dwelt  upon  your  dangers  and  your 
wants. 

That  paternal  care  death  hath  terminated.  To  you  who 
hear  me,  this,  like  his  previous  ministry,  will  be  a  dispensation 
of  mercy  or  of  judgment.  How  you  had  improved  his  previ- 
ous ministry,  had  already  been  apparent.  How  you  will  im- 
prove his  death  remains  to  be  determined. 

Ah  !  could  he  address  you  now,  with  what  increased  solem- 
nity would  he  speak  of  death,  of  hell,  of  judgment.  What 
am  I  saying  ?  He  does  address  you.  In  such  a  death  there  is 
a  tongue  that  speaks — in  such  a  grave,  there  is  a  voice  that  is 
audible.  If  you  hear  it  not,  it  is  because  you  will  not  hear  it. 
There  are  those  that  will.  But,  though  there  were  not,  God's 
high  purpose  will  be  answered.  Among  you,  His  embassadors 
have  not  only  labored  and  lamented,  they  have  also  languished 
and  died.  If  ye  repent  not,  their  deaths  shall  abide  as  a 
memorial,  and  their  sepulchral  monuments  abide  as  a  witness 
for  God.  Another  will  now  be  added  to  their  number,  for, 
the  mortal  remains  of  another  who  had  been  commissioned  to 
publish  the  glad  tidings,  is  to  be  conveyed  to  the  graveyard. 
The  mound  that  shall  inclose  his  ashes,  will  rise  beside  your 
pathway — a  mound  that  shall  oft  obtrude  itself  on  that  unre- 
pentant sinners  eyes  whom  in  life  he  warned,  and  whom  he 
still  warns,  though  dead,  and  shall  hereafter  warn,  till  only  the 
feet  of  strangers  pass  that  threshold  and  occupy  this  sanctuary. 
Where,  then,  will  be  his  former  flock  ?  Where  ?  Assembled 
in  the  charnel  house ;  a  subterranean  congregation  ;  laid  one  by 
one  beside  their  silent  pastor. 

What  next  ?  For  a  season,  oblivious  time  exerts  its  influ- 
ence over  those  memorials  that  make  the  dead  remembered. 
The  mound  sinks,  the  monumental  marble  moulders,  the  house 
of  desolation  becomes  continually  more  desolate,  till  both  the 
pastor  and  his  flock  on  earth  are  utterly  forgotten.  But  not 
in  heaven  are  they  forgotten.  Among  those  ruins  there  is 
redeemed  dust.  To  God  that  dust  is  precious,  and  He  will 
raise  it,  nor  it  alone.  At  an  appointed  hour,  the  Archan- 
gel's trump  shall  summon   both   the   pastor  and  his  flock  to 


68  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

judgment.  Both  will  obey  it.  For  the  sea  shall  deliver  up 
the  dead  that  are  in  it,  and  death  and  hell  shall  deliver  up  the 
dead  that  are  in  them. 

Then,  thou  scoffer,  and  ye  who,  being  warned,  repented 
not,  then  shall  ye  confront  your  pastor  and  answer  for  your- 
selves, while  he  accounts  for  that  stewardship  of  his,  now 
closed.  Then  shall  it  be  known  whether  the  blood  of  those 
souls  is  on  his  head  or  on  their  own. 

It  is  recorded  that  a  dead  body,  on  being  cast  into  Elisha's 
tomb,  as  it  touched  the  bones  of  the  prophet,  revived  and 
stood  upon  its  feet.  There  are  other  tombs,  besides  Elisha's, 
if  approached  aright,  that  would  impart  a  life-communicating 
influence.  Oh  !  that  the  spiritually  dead  could  be  induced 
mentally  to  frequent  the  graveyard,  and  attend  in  thought  on 
those  quickening,  edifying  lessons  which  wisdom  hears  re- 
peated from  those  chambers  where  the  prophets  of  the  Lord 
repose.  Never  does  the  eye  beam  with  such  radiance,  never 
does  the  tongue  utter  such  accents,  or  the  hand  move  with 
such  expressive  action,  as  when  begirded  with  a  shroud  and 
speaking  with  emphatic  silence  from  a  coffin.  Such  is  the  em- 
bassador's final  sermon ;  and  this  to  his  auditors  is  the  last 
means  of  grace.  And  is  there  no  hope  that  it  may  prove 
effectual  ?  Ye  who  have  heard  no  previous  sermon,  hear  this. 
'Tis  the  great  preacher,  Death,  who  warns  you.  Listen  to  that 
warning  and  delay  not.  He  holds  the  scimitar  as  well  as  the 
clarion  in  his  hand,  and,  standing  beside  the  sepulchre,  he 
shakes  the  one  while  he  sounds  the  other ;  and  his  commission 
is,  (after  having  warned  the  living  by  the  manner  in  which  he 
selects  and  strikes  the  dead),  to  cut  down  the  cumberer  of  the 
ground  and  gather,  though  unprepared,  the  wicked  to  the 
sepulchre. 

O  Clod,  stay  the  destroyer's  avenging  arm,  and  prevent, 
by  thy  grace,  that  doom  which  we  deserve  but  deprecate. 
"  He  that  hath  an  ear,  let  him  hear  what  the  Spirit  saith 
unto  the  churches;"  and,  hearing,  let  him  fly  betimes  from 
that  wrath  which  is  to  come. 

O  God,  give  this  grace  also,  and  to  thy  name  shall  be  the 
glory. 


MRS.    ALICIA  BLATCHFORD. 

From  the  New    York    Observer. 

Hope  in  Death. 

Such  is  the  title  of  a  funeral  discourse  delivered  at  Lansing- 
burgh,  N.  Y.,  by  the  Rev.  V.  D.  Reed,  on  the  occasion  of 
the  death  of  Mrs.  Alicia  Blatchford  on  the  2d  day  of  Decem- 
ber, 1846.  The  deceased  was  the  widow  of  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Blatchford  D.D.,  and  was  long  and  extensively  known  and 
loved  as  a  mother  in  Israel.  She  had  attained  her  80th  year, 
but  was  always  remarkably  active,  and,  until  within  eight  days 
of  her  death,  enjoyed  excellent  health. 

For  the  following  sketch  of  this  humble,  devoted,  and  use- 
ful Christian,  we  are  indebted  to  the  discourse  above  men- 
tioned. It  was  delivered  to  a  crowded  audience,  composed  of 
those  who  had  long  known  the  deceased,  and  whose  broken 
sobs  testified  their  sense  of  her  worth  and  their  loss. 

Mrs.  Alicia  Blatchford  was  born  in  Totness,  County  of  De- 
vonshire, England,  in  1767.  At  an  early  age  she  consecrated 
herself  to  that  Saviour  whose  name  she  delighted  to  honor  in 
all  her  subsequent  life.  In  1788  she  was  married  to  the  Rev. 
Samuel  Blatchford,  then  a  dissenting  minister  in  England.  In 
1795  he  came,  with  his  family,  to  this  country,  and,  after 
preaching  in  Bedford,  in  this  State,  and  Greenfield  and  Bridge- 
port, in  Connecticut,  he  removed  to  Lansingburgh  in  1804, 
and  assumed  the  pastoral  charge  of  the  united  Presbyterian 
churches  of  Lansingburgh  and  Waterford.  Here  he  labored 
with  great  ability  and  success  until  his  death,  in  1828. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  eminently  happy  and  suc- 
cessful in  filling  the  station,  at  all  times  responsible,  and  often 
difficult,  of  a  pastor's  wife.  Characterized  by  great  prudence, 
and  possessed  of  an  uncommon  acquaintance  with  human  na- 
ture, a  capacity  to  adapt  herself  to  every  variety  of  condition 
and  circumstances,  and  kindness  of  feeling  that  sought  the 
good  of  all,  she  labored  to  promote  the  temporal  and  spiritual 
welfare  of  the  different  members  of  her  husband's  flock. 


70  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

After  the  death  of  her  husband,  although  conscious  that  she 
no  longer  held  the  peculiar  relation  to  his  people  which  she  had 
previously  sustained,  her  interest  in  their  welfare,  and  her  ef- 
forts to  do  good  continued,  and  were  increased. 

She  was  eminently  conscientious  in  the  discharge  of  her 
duty.  Seldom  did  she  allow  an  opportunity  to  escape  of  drop- 
ping a  word  of  encouragement  to  Christians,  or  of  admonition 
to  the  impenitent.  While  she  was  pre-eminently  meek  and 
gentle,  she  evinced  great  moral  courage  in  rebuking  sin.  Some 
who  admired  her  character  and  esteemed  her  for  her  many  ex- 
cellences, shunned  her  presence  for  fear  of  her  fidelity. 

She  cherished  a  marked  reverence  for  the  Sabbath  and  the 
ordinances  of  God's  house.  She  would  never  allow  herself  or 
her  family  to  secularize  the  day  of  rest,  or  appropriate  holy 
time  to  matters  of  worldly  interest.  The  last  Sabbath  but  one 
of  her  life,  she  was  twice  present  in  the  sanctuary. 

She  possessed  great  reverence  and  love  for  the  word  of  God. 
It  was  her  uniform  practice  to  read  a  portion  from  the  Old  and 
New  Testament  every  day.  She  received  the  teachings  of  in- 
spiration with  the  docility  of  a  child,  and  fed  upon  them  as  her 
daily  food. 

She  had  clear  views  of  sin.  Her  perfect  horror  of  it  and 
loathing  of  herself  as  a  sinner  cannot  be  described.  Her  appre- 
hension of  the  plan  of  salvation  through  the  atoning  blood  of 
Christ,  and  of  the  necessity  of  the  atonement,  was  remarkably 
distinct.  She  felt  her  entire  dependence  upon  divine  grace, 
and  that,  if  she  were  ever  saved,  it  would  be  through  the  in- 
finite, unmerited,  sovereign  mercy  of  God,  in  Jesus  Christ. 

She  took  great  delight  in  prayer.  Her  life  was  emphatic- 
ally a  life  of  prayer.  She  suffered  nothing  to  interfere  with 
her  regular  seasons  of  devotion.  When  unable  to  attend  meet- 
ings for  social  worship,  she  spent  the  time  of  the  meeting  in 
prayer. 

She  was  most  faithful  and  thorough  in  self-examination. 
She  allowed  herself  no  excuse  for  indulgence  in  sin  or  neglect 
of  duty. 

Humility  was  one  of  her  most  prominent  characteristics. 
The  more  she  enjoyed  of  divine  goodness,  the  more  humiliating 
were  her  views  of  herself. 


MRS.   ALICIA  BLATCHFORD.  71 

The  last  sickness  of  Mrs.  Blatchford  was  short.  She  was  at- 
tacked severely  on  Wednesday  morning,  and  died  the  Wednes  - 
day  following.  In  the  early  part  of  her  illness,  she  seemed 
conscious  she  should  not  recover,  and,  with  great  composure, 
made  her  arrangements  to  die.  At  first,  her  mind  was  not  per- 
fectly at  rest.  She  hoped  and  prayed  that  some  comfort  might 
be  afforded  to  her  in  her  dying  hour ;  but  she  had  many 
doubts — not  of  God's  faithfulness — but  in  view  of  her  own  sin- 
fulness. "  If,  ever,"  said  she,  "  a  poor  sinner  deserved  to  be 
banished  from  the  presence  of  God  forever  and  ever,  I  am  that 
one — yet  I  know  that  Christ  died  to  save  sinners,  and  I  cast 
myself  upon  the  mercy  of  God,  in  Christ." 

At  length,  however,  the  cloud  began  to  be  removed.  Her 
hope  became  stronger.  Gradually,  her  fears  were  all  dissi- 
pated, her  darkness  became  the  brightness  of  day,  and  her  con- 
flicts were  all  forgotten  in  transporting  views  of  God's  mercy 
to  her  soul.  "  I  can  lean,"  at  last  she  could  say,  "  upon  the 
almighty  arm  of  my  Saviour.  I  feel  that  I  have  an  anchor  cast 
within  the  veil,  sure  and  steadfast.  I  know  that  my  Redeemer 
liveth.  It  is  an  awful  thought  that  an  immortal  soul  should  be 
banished  from  the  presence  of  God  forever.  I  know  I  deserve 
this,  but  trust  I  have  obtained  mercy  through  the  compassion- 
ate Saviour." 

On  Monday,  and  thenceforward  till  her  death,  all  was  peace. 
Not  the  shadow  of  a  doubt  was  permitted  to  disturb  the  se- 
renity of  her  soul.  Her  mind  continued  clear  on  the  subject 
of  religion  to  the  very  last,  and  her  happiness  was  unbounded. 
"  I  did  hope  and  pray,"  said  she,  "that  the  cloud  might  be  re- 
moved, and  it  has  all  passed  away.  I  thought  that  if  I  could 
get  but  one  glimpse  of  my  Saviour,  it  would  satisfy  me ;  but  now 
I  enjoy  the  full  blaze  of  the  divine  glory,  as  revealed  to  me 
through  Christ.  I  dared  to  hope  and  pray  only  for  jpeace,  that 
I  might  be  delivered  from  darkness  •  but  oh !  I  have  the 
fullness  of  joy — the  fullness  of  joy.  And  can  it  be  that  /  am 
so  blessed.  It  is  wonderful !  It  is  wonderful !  Matchless  con- 
descension !     Infinite  grace !" 

Her  deep  humility  and  earnest  watchfulness,  however,  con- 
tinued. She  anxiously  inquired  if  she  might  not  be  deceived. 
"  Oh !  tell  me,"  again  and  again   she  imploringly  said,   "  tell 


72  THE   BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

me,  do  you  think  I  am  deceived  ?"  She  could  hardly  admit 
that  such  displays  of  God's  love  could  be  made  to  such  a  sin- 
ner as  she  felt  herself  to  be. 

She  seemed  to  breathe  the  very  atmosphere  of  heaven. 
Her  soul  was  filled  with  the  presence  of  Christ.  Once,  while 
her  sufferings  were  most  intense,  a  short  season  was  spent  in 
prayer,  after  which  she  remarked :  "  I  was  completely  carried 
away  from  earth,  and  forgot  entirely  my  sufferings,  in  the 
consciousness  of  God's  presence  and  of  the  glory  to  be  re- 
vealed." 

Early  on  Wednesday  morning  a  great  change  took  place, 
and  it  became  evident  that  death  was  near.  Her  sufferings 
were  very  severe,  but  not  a  murmur  or  the  least  whisper  of 
impatience  escaped  her.  The  dying  conflict  was  long  and 
painful.  For  eighteen  hours  after  she  was  struck  with  death, 
she  was  held  grappling  with  the  king  of  terrors.  Yet  she 
had  no  fear.  She  felt  that  her  Saviour  was  with  her,  and 
death  could  not  alarm  her.  During  this  time,  several  scenes 
of  overpowering  interest  were  witnessed,  of  which  no  ade- 
quate description  can  be  given.  At  one  time,  she  seemed  in 
a  perfect  transport  of  joy  in  view  of  her  departure.  All  pres- 
ent were  filled  with  awe,  and  thought  her  just  about  to  burst 
the  chains  of  earth,  as  she  raised  her  hands,  and,  with  heaven 
beaming  in  her  countenance,  exclaimed :  "  I'm  mounting — 
I'm  mounting — Oh  !  I'm  mounting.  Oh  !  I  desire  to  see  the 
whole  world  filled  with  the  glory  of  God." 

Her  interest  in  her  family  was  prominent  to  the  very 
last.  It  was  remarked,  by  one  of  her  children,  "  You  will 
soon  be  in  heaven  and  see  our  dear  father."  "  Yes,  yes," 
said  she,  "  and  what  shall  I  tell  him  %  "  "  Tell  him  we  are  all 
following  on  to  meet  you  there."  She  earnestly  exclaimed : 
"What — all?"  and,  directing  a  penetrating  glance  to  her 
children  around  her,  she  enquired,  "Shall  I  tell  him  that 
you  are  all  coming  to  meet  us  ?  Shall  I  tell  him  you  will 
all  be  there  ? "  With  bursting  hearts  they  responded,  "  Yes, 
mother,  allP  As  if  every  wish  of  earth  were  gratified  in  the 
confident  hope  of  meeting  all  her  loved  ones  again,  she  clasped 
her  hands,  and,  raising  her  eyes  to  heaven,  said,  "  Lord,  now 
lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  for  mine  eyes  have 


MRS.    ALICIA   BLATCHFORD.  73 

seen  thy  salvation;"  and,  after  a  long  pause,  which  seemed  to 
be  spent  in  prayer,  she  continued  :  "  My  great  desire  is,  that 
my  children  may  all  be  united  to  the  God  of  their  fathers.  I 
desire  them  all  to  be  united  to  the  visible  church.  It  is  not 
the  name,  nor  the  form,  but  the  power  of  godliness  I  pray  for. 
They  must  be  clothed  with  the  righteousness  of  Christ.  The 
righteousness  of  Christ,  the  righteousness  of  Christ  alone,  will 
be  sufficient  in  the  great  day.1'  It  was  said  to  her  :  "  You  will 
exhaust  yourself.  Do  take  a  little  rest."  "  Oh  !  "  said  she, 
"  I  have  done  nothing  during  my  whole  life.  Let  me  do 
something  in  death." 

She  delighted  in  nothing  so  much  as  to  exalt  Christ.  Re- 
peatedly, she  said:  "  I  can  do  nothing,  and  I  rejoice  that  I  can 
do  nothing,  without  Christ."  It  was  said :  "  Your  contest  will 
soon  be  ended;  you  will  soon  obtain  the  victory."  She  added, 
with  great  emphasis  :  "  Thanks  be  unto  God,  through  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ."  The  name  of  Jesus  had  a  charm,  and  would 
rouse  her  when  her  energies  were  almost  spent.  For  some 
time  before  she  breathed  her  last,  when  conversation  was  very 
difficult,  we  heard  her  exclaim,  in  broken  expressions  :  "  Jesus" 
— Jesus  " — "precious  Saviour" — "lovely  Redeemer" — "prom- 
ises, promises" — "  grace,  grace  " — "  glorious  home  " — "  heaven- 
ly rest" — "wonderful  plan  of  salvation" — "wonderful,  won- 
derful, wonderful  " — "and  that  I,  so  unworthy,  should  be  so 
blessed  !  "— "  Lord,  why  is  it  I  %  why  is  it  I  %  " 

About  an  hour  before  she  expired,  it  was  said  to  her :  "  The 
struggle  will  soon  be  over."  She  replied  :  "  Jordan  seems 
short — Jordan  seems  very  short."  These  were  the  last  words 
we  could  distinguish.  She  was  almost  across  the  river  of 
death,  and  her  soul  was  enraptured  with  the  sight  of  the 
heavenly  Canaan.  Her  labored  respiration  soon  ceased.  Her 
sufferings  seemed  at  an  end.  She  lay  perfectly  quiet,  breathed 
shorter  and  shorter,  and  fell  asleep,  so  gently,  that  it  was  diffi- 
cult to  say  when  the  spirit  was  released.  In  the  stillness  of 
that  solemn  midnight  hour,  as,  with  breathless  interest,  we 
gazed  upon  the  countenance  of  that  dying  saint,  and,  kneeling 
by  her  couch,  commended  the  departing  spirit  to  Almighty 
God,  we  felt  that  heaven  was  near,  that  we  could  almost  look 
within  the  veil,  that  we  could  almost  see  that  Saviour  in  whose 
10 


74  THE   BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

arms  she  quietly  fell  asleep,  and  almost  hear  the  bursts  of  joy 
and  praise  that  rose  from  the  lips  of  the  Heavenly  host  as  an- 
other ransomed  sinner  was  welcomed  home  to  glory.  Oh  ! 
that  the  infidel  had  been  there  !  Oh !  that  the  thoughtless 
votaries  of  earth  had  been  there  !  Oh !  that  cold  hearted, 
worldly-minded  Christians  could  have  witnessed  the  peace,  the 
joy,  the  triumph  of  that  death  scene.  Them  that  sleep  in 
Jesus  will  God  bring  with  him. 


THE  BEVEEEND  HENBY  BLATCHFOED. 

From  "  The  Early  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,"  by  Spence. 

The  Eev.  Henry  Blatchford  was  a  native  of  England. 
His  father,  the  late  Eev.  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D.,  of  Lan- 
singburgh,  1ST.  Y.,  removed,  with  his  family,  to  this  country, 
when  Henry  was  quite  young. 

He  was  liberally  educated,  being  a  graduate  of  Union  Col- 
lege, of  the  class  of  1£1%  and  a  member  of  the  first  class  of 
students  that  entered  the  Theological  Seminary  at  Princeton, 
!N".  J.  He  was  ordained  and  installed,  November  27th,  1815, 
over  the  Irish  church,  by  which  name  it  was  then  known,  situ- 
ated in  Orange  street,  ~New  York.  It  was  subsequently  re- 
moved to  Canal  street,  and  destroyed  by  fire  in  1861.  In  1818 
he  removed  to  Salem,  Massachusetts,  and  was  installed  pastor 
there  January  4th,  1819.  Here  he  remained  two  years.  In  the 
early  part  of  the  summer  of  1822,  the  churches  at  Snow  Hill, 
Pitts'  Creek,  Eehoboth  and  Monokin,  in  Maryland,  were  with- 
out a  preacher,  and  invited  Mr.  Blatchford  to  visit  them.  His 
preaching  was  most  acceptable  to  Christians  of  all  names  ;  and, 
whilst  he  labored  here,  the  people  became  increasingly  inter- 
ested in  his  public  ministrations.  His  sermons  were  not 
merely  carefully  but  punctiliously  elaborated,  and  he  read 
them,  I  believe,  precisely  as  they  had  been  written.  I  never 
knew  a  minister  who  gained  more  rapidly  upon  the  affections 
of  those  whom  he  taught  publicly,  but  especially  of  those 
with  whom  he  mingled  in  social  intercourse. 

On  Sunday,  the  25th  day  of  August,  1822,  he  preached 
three  times  in  the  church  at  Snow  Hill.  His  public  prayers, 
at  all  times  remarkable  for  their  fluency,  fervor,  and  humble 
familiarity  with  God,  were  so  remarkable  for  those  qualities  on 
•that  day,  and  especially  in  the  evening,  as  to  thrill  the  feelings 
of  those  who  in  faith  united  with  him.  I  remember  distinctly 
the  expression  of  a  female  in  very  humble  life,  a  member  of 
a  church  of  a  different  name.     "  I  never  heard  such  prayers," 


76  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

said  she,  "  they  pierce  through  and  through  me."  The  text  of 
his  third  sermon,  preached  on  the  evening  of  that  day,  was 
John  1,  41 :  "  Wejiave  found  the  Messias  ;  which  is,  being  in- 
terpreted, the  Christ."  I  know  not  that  he  had  ever  preached 
with  deeper  feeling  or  greater  power,  and  he  concluded  the 
sermon  by  repeating  that  solemn  hymn  commencing :  "Lo! 
on  a  narrow  neck  of  land,"  &c.  It  was  his  last  sermon.  But 
one  other  earthly  Sabbath  dawned  upon  him  ;  for,  on  Saturday, 
the  7th  of  September,  at  Princess  Anne,  whither  he  had  gone 
but  a  few  days  before,  he  fell  asleep,  and  entered,  I  doubt  not, 
upon  a  Sabbath  which  will  never  end. 

On  the  morning  of  Sunday  I  attended  his  funeral  in  the 
church  at  Princess  Anne.  In  the  absence  of  a  Presbyterian 
minister,  an  Episcopal  clergyman  preached  the  sermon,  and 
was  assisted  in  the  other  services  by  two  brethren  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church.  The  death  of  Mr.  Blatchford 
was  sudden  and  unexpected,  and  the  removal  of  such  a  man  to 
his  "  long  home,"  whilst  far  away  from  father,  mother,  wife, 
children,  and  the  friends  of  his  early  life,  aroused  all  the  sym- 
pathies of  the  people,  and  bathed  the  faces  of  the  speakers  and 
many  of  their  hearers  in  tears.  I  remember  the  appearance 
and  manner  of  one  of  the  clergymen  who  stood  at  the  head  of 
the  grave — his  eyes  red  and  swollen,  his  voice  husky.  Ele- 
vating his  right  hand,  he  commenced  an  address  to  the  con- 
gregation, as  follows  :  "It  has  been,  and  is,  my  prayer  to  die  as 
our  brother  has  died — to  be  called  home  while  busity  engaged 
doing  my  master's  work." 

On  a  neat  white  marble  slab  raised  in  front  of  the  church  at 
Monokin  is  the  following  inscription  :  "  In  memory  of  the 
Ttev.  Henry  Blatchford,  A.M.,  the  eldest  son  of  the  Rev. 
Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D.,  of  Lansingburgh,  New  York.  He 
died,  September  7th,  1822,  in  the  34th  year  of  his  age.  As  a 
man  a  brother,  a  husband,  and  a  father,  his  virtues  were  emi- 
nently conspicuous.  As  a  Christian  and  a  minister,  he  was  dis- 
tinguished for  his  humility,  his  piety,  and  his  zeal.  All  who 
knew  him  loved  him.  He  was  removed  in  the  midst  of  his  la- 
bors in  this  vicinity,  from  the  work  of  the  vineyard  to  the  re- 
wards of  the  blessed ;  and,  as  a  pledge  of  tender  Christian  re- 
gard, this  monument  is  erected  over  his  remains  by  the  con- 


THE  REVEREND  HENRY  BLATCHFORD.        77 

gregatiotns  of  Monokin,  Rehoboth,  Pitts'   Creek,  and   Snow 
Hill."* 


*  At  the  time  of  the  improvement  of  the  Lot  in  Oakwood  Cemetery,  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  (see  note  page  55,)  a  plain  marble  slab,  five  feet  ten  inches  high  by  two 
feet  five  inches  broad,  was  raised,  with  the  .following  inscription :  "  A  Ceno- 
taphic  Memorial  of  Rev.  Henry  Blatchford,  A.  M.,  who  died  at  Princess  Anne, 
Md.,  Sept.  7,  1822,  aged  34  yrs  —  Also,  Rev.  John  Blatchford,  D.D.,  who  died 
at  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  Apl.  8,  1855,  aged  56  yrs.,  interred  in  Quincy,IU. — sons  of  Rev. 
Saml.  and  Alicia  Blatchford." 


MARY  MILPOED  WINDEATT  BLATCHFORD. 

The  following  Obituary  was  written  by  Dr.  James  C.  Bliss,  of  New  York,  and 
published  in  the  New  York  Observer,  in  August,  184*7 

Died,  on  the  17th  inst.,  Mary  Milford  Windeatt  Blatch- 
ford,  daughter  of  the  late  Rev.  Samuel  Blatchford,  D.D.,  of 
Lansingburgh,  N.  Y. 

There  was  such  a  beautiful  blending  of  those  graces  which 
ennoble  and  adorn  Christian  character,  in  this  estimable  lady, 
that  something  more  than  an  ordinary  obituary  notice  seems 
proper ;  and  this,  not  so  much  to  eulogize  the  departed,  who  is 
beyond  the  influence  of  commendation  or  blame,  or  to  gratify 
the  endearing  recollections  of  surviving  friends,  but  to  excite 
in  the  hearts  of  Christians,  and  especially  of  the  young,  a  desire, 
like  our  departed  friend,  to  make  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  their 
pattern,  to  endeavor  to  have  his  spirit,  to  grow  into  his  like- 
ness, and  to  tread  in  his  footsteps. 

Miss  Blatchford,  under  faithful  parental  training  and  exam- 
ple, and  prayer,  which  took  hold  on  the  covenant  faithfulness 
of  God,  became,  at  an  early  age,  a  subject  of  divine  grace.  It 
was  at  a  period  when  grateful  Christians  were  directed  to  the 
fountain  head  of  truth  for  instruction,  and  when,  too,  the  old 
practical  evangelical  writers,  such  as  Baxter,  Flavel,  Owen, 
Doddridge,  and  others,  were,  put  into  their  hands,  to  guide 
their  footsteps  heavenward.  It  was  from  the  sacred  Scriptures, 
and  writers  like  those  named,  that  Miss  B.'s  Christian  charac- 
ter was  moulded ;  and,  consequently,  it  had  features  which  it 
would  have  never  derived  from  the  light,  trashy,  sentimental, 
religious  literature  current  at  the  present  day. 

The  recollections  of  the  writer  of  this  run  back  to  the  period 
when  she  began  her  Christian  course.  He  remembers  her  de- 
votional habits,  her  spiritual-mindedness,  her  watchfulness  over 
her  own  heart,  her  self-distrust  and  deep  sense  of  unworthiness, 
and  her  reliance  on  the  atoning  sacrifice  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.     With  these  characteristics,  she  was  remarkable  for  her 


80  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

unruffled  temper,  meekness,  humility,  and  deep  sympathy  for 
all  who  were  suffering.  She  had,  likewise,  an  irrepressible  de- 
sire for  the  salvation  of  the  impenitent,  especially  of  her  young 
friends  and  companions.  At  that  early  age,  she  would  single 
out  particular  individuals,  and  make  them  the  subjects  of  her 
prayers  and  efforts,  till  they  were  hopefully  brought  into  the 
kingdom  of  Christ.  The  writer  has  a  distinct  recollection  of  her 
having,  when  quite  young,  mentioned  to  him  an  instance  of  her 
having  her  anxieties  and  solicitude  fastened  upon  a  young  friend, 
in  whose  behalf  she  wrestled  with  the  angel  of  the  Covenant 
every  time  she  bent  her  knee  before  the  mercy  seat,  for  more 
than  a  year,  till  her  faith  was  rewarded  by  the  hopeful  con- 
version of  her  friend,  who  has  lived  to  adorn  her  profession, 
and  fill  a  sphere  of  usefulness. 

As  Miss  B.  advanced  to  mature  life,  the  character  of  her 
piety  became  more  fully  developed  and  manifested  in  all  the 
relations  of  life.  It  was  particularly  exhibited  in  the  family  re- 
lation, in  her  devotion  to  her  honored  parents,  in  the  deep  in- 
terest she  felt  in  her  brothers  and  sisters,  in  her  self-sacrificing 
spirit,  and  in  her  perfect  disinterestedness,  in  all  which  it 
seemed  she  had  no  object  for  which  to  live  but  the  good  of 
others.  But  her  field  of  usefulness  was  not  bounded  by  her 
immediate  family  circle.  She  ardently  engaged  in  the  relig- 
ious instruction  of  the  young  in  the  Sabbath  School,  and  in 
all  the  works  of  charity  which  are  the  appropriate  province  of 
females.  She  was  especially  a  ministering  angel  in  the  dwell- 
ings of  the  sick  and  the  sorrowing.  So  remarkably  was  this  the 
case,  that,  for  many  years,  scarcely  an  instance  of  severe  illness 
occurred  in  the  village,  either  among  the  rich  or  the  poor,  in 
which  she  was  not  found  at  the  bedside  of  the  suffering,  en- 
deavoring to  soothe  their  pains  and  minister  to  their  wants. 
She  was  equally  prompt  in  her  visits  to  the  house  of  mourning, 
and  in  attending  to  all  those  kind  offices,  and  administering 
those  consolations,  so  grateful  and  so  much  needed  by  the  be- 
reaved heart,  and  which  none  can  so  well  and  so  appropriately 
bestow  as  a  Christian  female.  She  was  a  wise  counsellor,  and 
accessible  to  all,  and  her  advice  was,  perhaps,  more  frequently 
sought  than  that  of  any  female  in  the  circle  in  which  she 
moved. 


MARY  M.    W.    BLATCHFORD.  81 

Few  have  spent  a  life  of  more  unobtrusive  usefulness,  and 
few  will  have  their  memory  more  richly  embalmed  in  the  hearts 
of  surviving  friends. 

Miss  B.  was  subject,  from  early  life,  to  attacks  of  violent 
disease.  In  1844,  she  had  a  severe  and  dangerous  illness,  from 
the  eifects  of  which  she  never  fully  recovered,  and  she  was 
never  able  afterwards  to  resume  the  active  duties  of  life. 


ALICIA   WINDEATT  BLATCHFOBD. 

The  following  notice,  prepared  by  the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatehford,  D.D.,  was 
published  in  the  Lansivgburgh  Gazelle,  in  April,  1 808. 

Died,  on  Thursday,  the  21st  inst.,  in  the  18th  year  of  her 
age,  Miss  Alicia  Windeatt  Blatchford,  of  this  village. 
The  distinguished  piety  of  this  young  lady  was  peculiarly 
evidenced  through  a  long  and  distressing  sickness,  and  few 
persons  have  left  behind  them  so  glorious  a  testimony  of  the 
truth  of  Christianity  and  the  power  of  divine  grace.  The 
generous  sympathy  and  assiduous  attention  of  all  descriptions 
of  persons  during  her  illness,  and  the  most  affectionate  offices 
of  friendship  displayed  by  the  young  persons  of  the  village, 
whilst  they  were  peculiarly  serviceable  to  the  deceased,  and 
highly  grateful  to  her  friends,  reflected  the  highest  credit  upon 
themselves.  Her  funeral  was  attended  by  an  immense  con- 
course of  people,  and  the  solemn  event  was  excellently  im- 
proved in  a  sermon  delivered  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Coe,  from  2d 
Kings,  1th  chap.,  26th  verse :  "  Is  it  well  with  the  child  ? 
And  she  answered,  It  is  well."* 

*This  event  was  also  improved,  on  the  following-  Sabbath,  in  a  very  impres- 
sive discourse  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Kendrick,  minister  of  the  Baptist  Church,  after- 
wards the  Rev.  Dr.  Kendrick,  of  Rochester  University,  from  Eccl.,  12,  5:  "Man 
goeth  to  his  long  home,  and  the  mourners  go  about  the  streets." 

A  procession  of  one  hundred  young  ladies,  dressed  in  white,  followed  the 
corpse  from  the  church  to  the  graveyard. 


THOMAS  WINDEATT  BLATCHFORD,  M.  D. 

Extracts  from  a  sermon  delivered  in  the  Second  Street  Presbyterian  Church,  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  January  2%th,  1866,  by  the  Reverend  D.  Kennedy,  D.D.,  on  the  occasion  of  the 
death  of  Thomas  W.  Blatchford,  M.  D. 

Thomas  Windeatt,  son  of  the  Reverend  Samuel  and  Alicia 
Blatchford,  was  born  in  Devonshire,  England,  in  1794.  In 
infancy  he  came,  with  his  parents,  to  America,  they  residing 
first  in  Bedford,  New  York,  and  shortly  afterwards  in  Green- 
field Hill,  Connecticut,  to  which  place  his  father  was  called  to 
fill  the  pulpit  rendered  vacant  by  Dr.  Dwight's  acceptance  of 
the  Presidency  of  Yale  College.  We  next  find  him  preparing 
for  college  in  the  Academy  at  Lansingburgh,  N.  Y.,  of  which 
his  father  had  charge  in  connection  with  his  labors  as  pastor 
of  the  United  Presbyterian  Churches  of  Waterford  and  Lan- 
singburgh. His  education  was  subsequently  continued  at 
Union  College,  where  he  enjoyed  the  special  friendship  and  as- 
sistance of  the  Professor  of  Chemistry,  Thomas  C.  Brownell, 
afterwards  Bishop  of  Connecticut,  and  also  of  Thomas  McAu- 
ley,  Professor  of  Mathematics.  After  prosecuting  his  medical 
studies  for  a  period  in  the  city  of  New  York,  he  went  to  Lon- 
don, where  he  attended  two  courses  of  lectures  at  St.  Thomas' 
and  Guy's  Hospitals,  under  the  charge  of  Professor  Cline  and 
Sir  Astley  Cooper.  Returning  to  New  York,  he  continued  his 
studies  at  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  where  he 
was  graduated  in  1817.  Soon  after  this  he  became  established 
in  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Jamaica,  Long  Island,  where, 
in  1819,  he  was  married  to  Harriet,  daughter  of  Thomas 
Wickes,  one  of  the  original  patentees  of  the  town  of  Hunting- 
ton, L.  I.  After  a  residence  of  ten  years  in  Jamaica,  he  re- 
moved to  Troy,  in  1828,  which  has  been  his  permanent  home 
to  the  time  of  his  decease. 

In  this  city  it  may  truly  be  said  that  Dr.  Blatchford  was  ac- 
tive and  faithful  in  every  good  word  and  work,  rising  rapidly 
in  the  confidence  and  respect  of  his  fellow-citizens  immediately 
on  coming  hither,  and  subsequently  filling  many  offices  of  trust 


86  THE   BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

and  responsibility.  The  truth  is,  his  influence  in  the  city  has 
been  a  moral  power  for  good,  reaching  to  every  department  of 
its  material,  sanitary,  intellectual  and  Christian  improvement. 
Most  men  are  apt  to  feel  themselves  overtaxed  with  the  duties 
of  one  or  two  public  positions  in  addition  to  their  ordinary  en- 
gagements, but  he  was  adequate  to  the  superintendence  of  a 
large  number  ;  nor  has  there  ever  been  any  complaint  that  he 
was  negligent  in  the  discharge  of  responsibilities  devolved  upon 
him. 

He  was  an  earnest  advocate  of  the  system  of  free  schools,  and, 
for  several  years,  rendered  efficient  service  as  trustee  and  school 
commissioner,  and,  for  seven  years,  acted  as  President  of  the 
Board  of  Education,  devoting  much  time  to  a  personal  visitation 
of  the  schools.  He  was  one  of  the  most  efficient  of  the  Trus- 
tees of  the  Polytechnic  Institute,  and  also  of  the  Troy  Female 
Seminary,  in  each  of  which  he  cherished  a  deep  and  lively  in- 
terest. He  has  been  President  of  the  Rensselaer  County  Tem- 
perance Society,  and  the  Rensselaer  County  Bible  Society,  and 
.was  deeply  interested  in  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion, whose  daily  prayer-meetings  he  attended  whenever  his 
duties  would  allow  ;  and  all  this  amid  the  cares  and  responsi- 
bilities of  an  extended  professional  practice.  When  we  add 
to  this,  his  labors  in  the  hospitals  and  asylums  of  the  city, 
with  his  duties  of  ruling  elder  in  this  Church,  we  are  literally 
amazed  at  the  amount  of  work  he  performed.  But  more  still, 
his  pen  was  frequently  employed  on  important  and  abstruse 
themes  connected  with  medical  science,  and. he  has  published 
much  which  has  secured  to  him  an  enviable  reputation  in  this 
and  other  lands. 

The  mental  capacities  of  Dr.  Blatchford  were  originally  of 
a  high  order,  and  were  constantly  expanded  and  invigorated  by 
a  continuous  intellectual  and  professional  training.  With  a 
clear  and  ready  perception  of  truth,  an  accurate  judgment  and 
comprehensive  views,  were  united  a  somewhat  vivid  imagina- 
tion and  a  retentive  memory.  These  attributes,  disciplined 
and  strengthened  by  habits  of  patient  reflection,  enabled  him 
to  grasp  and  analyze  the  various  subjects  that  came  before  him, 
with  energy  and  success.  Of  this,  his  numerous  contributions 
to  the  leading  medical  journals  of  the  country  furnish  the  most 
ample  proof. 


THOMAS   W.    BLATCHFORD,    M.D.  87 

Dr.  Blatcliford  always  cherished  a  high  estimate  of  the  dig- 
nity of  his  profession,  and  evidently  engaged  in  its  duties  from 
higher  motives  than  those  of  avarice  and  ambition.  He  appre- 
ciated its  claims,  and  conscientiously  met  its  manifold  obliga- 
tions. So  high  a  sense  did  he  possess  of  the  dignity  of  the 
medical  profession,  that  he  abhorred  empiricism  in  all  its  forms, 
whether  found  in  connection  with  ignorance  or  learning.  When 
associated  with  the  latter,  he  could  not  always  resist  the  convic- 
tion that  it  was  assumed  for  other  than  honorable  and  useful 
purposes,  and  he  treated  it  accordingly.  Himself  a  thinker  and 
a  student,  he  felt  that  no  one  was  entitled  to  confidence  in  the 
profession  without  possessing  the  same  elements  of  devotion  to 
its  high  claims.  In  this  respect  he  was  honest  and  outspoken . 
Any  believed  abuse  of  professional  trust  he  resolutely  opposed, 
however  strong  the  agency  by  which  the  wrong  was  attempted 
to  be  consummated.  Possessing  an  innate  desire  to  relieve  hu- 
man sorrow,  he  never  refused  to  answer  the  calls  made  upon 
him,  unless  he  was  himself  prostrated  by  disease.  By  night  or 
by  day,  however  wearied  and  exhausted  by  previous  service, 
however  severe  the  storm,  debilitating  the  heat,  or  intense  the 
cold,  however  distant  the  patient  or  lowly  his  habitation,  he 
promptly  responded  to  every  call,  and  hastened,  as  a  minister  of 
mercy,  to  the  couch  of  the  sick  and  the  dying.  Christian  love, 
united  to  a  naturally  humane  and  sympathizing  disposition,  in- 
spired him  with  a  sort  of  sacred  enthusiasm  in  the  duties  of  his 
calling.  The  voluminous  record  of  his  professional  charities  to 
the  poor,  can  be  read  only  by  Him  from  whom  he  has  received 
the  gracious  benediction  :  "  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto 
one  of  the  least  of  these  my  brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me.1' 

To  the  high  estimate  which  I  have  placed  upon  the  character 
of  Dr.  Blatcliford  as  a  physician,  I  am  sure  I  can  adduce  the 
testimony  of  all  his  professional  brethren  in  this  city.  They 
knew  him,  valued  him,  and  trusted  him  ;  and  they  are  ready 
to  bear  witness  to  his  skill,  his  urbanity,  his  unselfishness,  his 
high  sense  of  honor,  and  his  stainless  integrity.  This  testi- 
mony is  fully  corroborated  by  the  honors  conferred  upon  him 
by  different  medical  associations  and  institutions  in  this  and 
other  States.  He  has  been  President  of  the  New  York  State 
Medical  Society  ;  member  of  the  American  Association  for  the 


88  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

Advancement  of  Science ;  Vice  President  of  the  American 
Medical  Association  ;  Corresponding  Fellow  of  the  Academy 
of  Sciences,  St.  Louis,  Mo. ;  Fellow  of  the  College  of  Physi- 
cians and  Surgeons  in  New  York,  and  subsequently  President 
of  the  Alumni  of  that  Institution.  He  has  also  been  Honor- 
ary Member  of  the  State  Medical  Societies  of  Connecticut  and 
New  Jersey. 

In  contemplating  the  religious  character  and  life  of  Dr. 
Blatchford,  we  find  much  that  is  deeply  interesting  and  in- 
structive. Favored  with  the  unspeakable  blessing  of  a  pious 
parentage,  special  attention  was  given  to  his  religious  training. 
The  great  truths  of  the  gospel  were  kept  constantly  and 
prayerfully  in  contact  with  his  understanding  and  conscience, 
not  only  in  their  intrinsic  greatness  and  importance,  but  also 
in  their  practical  bearing  upon  his  spiritual  interests  for  time 
and  eternity.  As  might  have  been  expected,  deep  religious 
impressions  were  received  by  him  in  early  life.  But  it  was 
not  till  1812,  while  prosecuting  his  medical  studies  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  that  he  made  a  public  profession  of  his  faith  in 
the  Son  of  God,  by  uniting  with  the  Presbyterian  church  in 
Rutgers  street,  then  under  the  pastoral  care  of  the  Reverend 
Dr.  Milledollar.  Several  years  after  this,  under  the  preaching 
of  the  Reverend  Dr.  Nettleton,  he  experienced  what  he  has 
been  accustomed  to  call  a  "  reawakening,"  the  salutary  effects 
of  which  were  manifest  during  the  whole  of  his  subsequent 
life.  An  interesting  account  of  this  event,  written  by  himself, 
has  been  published  in  the  second  edition  of  the  Memoir  of  Dr. 
Nettleton.  In  1828,  he  removed  to  this  city,  and  united  with 
the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  from  which,  in  1842,  he  came 
by  letter  to  this  Church,  in  which  he  sustained  the  office  of 
ruling  elder  till  the  time  of  his  death — a  period  of  more  than 
twenty  years. 

When  I  refer  to  the  religious  life  of  Dr.  Blatchford,  I  feel 
that  I  am  speaking  of  something  with '  which  every  one  who 
hears  me  is  well  acquainted.  He  was  known  every  where,  in 
the  highest  style  of  character  which  any  man  can  possess — 
that  of  a  true  Christian.  He  was  always  in  a  mood  for  devo- 
tional services,  and  never  seemed  more  happy  than  when  he 
could  turn  his  thoughts  from  business  or  social  enjoyments  to 


THOMAS  W.    BLATCHFORD,    M.D.  89 

spend  with  Christian  friends  a  brief  interval  of  communion 
with  God  in  prayer.  With  a  disposition  marked  by  natural 
vivacity  and  cheerfulness,  he  was  always  welcome  in  every  so- 
cial circle ;  and,  while  his  piety  was  at  an  equal  remove  from 
austerity  and  levity,  few  came  in  contact  with  him  who  felt 
not  the  influence  of  his  enlivening  and  instructive  Christian 
converse.  There  was  no  asceticism  in  his  religion,  which, 
though  it  might  not  prevent  him  from  entering  into  heaven, 
would  still  unlit  him  for  society  on  earth.  His  was  a  large, 
loving,  genial,  sympathizing  heart.  As  a  friend,  he  was  ever 
ready  to  listen  to  the  claims  of  those  around  him,  and  prompt 
to  assist  with  counsel,  encouragement,  and  pecuniary  aid. 
Those  who  were  younger  could  regard  him  as  a  loving  father ; 
his  equals  in  age,  as  an  affectionate  and  sympathizing  brother. 
It  can  be  said  of  him,  with  confidence,  that  wherever  he  was, 
at  home  or  abroad,  in  public  or  in  the  family,  he  forgot  not  for 
a  moment  that  he  was  a  disciple  of  Christ,  nor  failed  to  exem- 
plify the  pure  and  holy  principles  which  he  professed.  What- 
soever things  were  true,  and  honest,  and  just,  and  pure,  and 
lovely,  and  of  good  report,  commended  themselves  to  his  judg- 
ment and  his  taste.  The  exemplariness  of  his  life  was  pro- 
verbial ;  and  of  his  sincerity  and  honesty  of  purpose  in  all  he 
said  and  did,  who  entertains  a  doubt  ?  Such  was  the  trans- 
parency of  the  principle  of  integrity  within  him,  that  his  very 
presence  was  a  rebuke  to  all  dishonesty,  dissimulation,  and  hy- 
pocrisy. He  loved  righteousness  in  all  its  phases,  and  hated 
iniquity  in  all  its  forms,  however  alluring  the  garb  it  might 
assume.  In  his  equanimity  and  self-possession,  in  his  govern- 
ment of  temper,  and  in  his  spirit  of  forbearance,  he  made  con- 
spicuous attainments.  Here  the  natural  virtues  of  his  charac- 
ter were  beautifully  blended  with  his  Christian  graces,  and  re- 
ceived from  them  their  lovely  and  attractive  features.  So  that, 
as  charity  dwelt  in  his  heart,  the  law  of  kindness  was  ever 
upon  his  lips.  Ready  to  forgive  an  injury,  nothing  but  an  ac- 
knowledgment of  the  wrong  was  needed  to  restore  the  offender 
to  the  fullest  participation  of  his  confidence  and  affection. 

The  many  acts  of  beneficence  he  performed  were  prompted 
by  the  combined  influence  of  feeling  and  duty.     The  circle  of 
his  benevolence  embraced  the  whole  family  of  man ;  for,  there 
12 


90  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

are  few,  if  any,  of  the  great  institutions  of  the  land,  which 
contemplate  the  regeneration  of  the  world,  which  did  not  find 
in  him  a  liberal  supporter.  But  he  did  not  stop  with  these. 
There  were  innumerable  rills  of  refreshing  bounty  which  he 
caused  to  circulate  amid  the  habitations  of  the  afflicted  and 
destitute  around  him.  How  many  widows  and  orphans  have 
his  angel  ministrations  gladdened  and  blessed,  who  spontane- 
ously rise  up  this  day  to  bear  testimony  to  his  unostentatious 
and  liberal  benefactions !  But  a  small  proportion  of  his  chari- 
ties can  ever  be  known  on  earth,  for  they  were  performed  in 
imitation  of  Him  whose  life  was  one  constant  scene  of  benefi- 
cence, and  who  taught  his  disciples  to  do  good  for  its  own  sake, 
and  not  to  be  seen  of  men. 

To  a  life  thus  marked  by  consecration  to  the  service  of 
God,  and  unceasing  devotion  to  the  welfare  of  his  fellow  men, 
it  is  natural  to  anticipate  a  corresponding  close.  And  in  this 
we  are  not  disappointed.  The  first  decided  inroad  made  upon 
his  physical  strength  occurred  in  the  spring  of  1862,  caused  by 
his  incessant  labors  to  relieve  the  wants  of  those  who  suffered 
by  the  great  fire,  which,  at  that  time,  desolated  so  large  a  por- 
tion of  our  city.  But  notwithstanding  the  gradual  failure  of 
his  powers  from  that  time  onward,  his  activity  and  energy 
were  such  that  he  did  not  give  up  any  of  his  duties,  nor  relax 
his  usual  diligence  and  promptness  in  his  professional  services. 
On  the  23d  of  December  last,  he  was  prostrated  by  an  attack 
of  intermittent  fever,  which  resulted  in  typhoid  pneumonia. 
After  lingering  for  fifteen  days,  the  gentle  spirit  of  the  faithful 
servant  of  God  was  released  from  the  sphere  of  his  earthly 
labors. 


SAMUEL  MILFORD  BLATCHFORD. 

The  following  address  was  delivered  by  the  Reverend  William  Adams,  D.D.,  Pas- 
tor of  the  Madison  Square  Presbyterian  Church,  New  York,  on  the  occasion  of  the 
funeral  of  Samuel  M.  Blatchford,  Esq.,  who  died  in  New  York,  June  'id,  1864.* 

We  are  conscious  of  no  abrupt  and  violent  transition  from 
the  Christian  Communion  to  the  funeral  services.  We  can 
conceive  that  it  might  have  been  otherwise.  But  now,  this 
Summer  Sabbath,  this  blessed  Sacrament,  and  the  funeral  of  a 
true  Christian,  all  blend  and  harmonize  together  in  one  uni- 
form impression.  "  'Till  he  come  " — are  the  words  sounding 
in  our  ears  in  connection  with  the  observance  of  this  ordinance. 
And  Christ  has  come  to  another  of  our  number.  But  a  short 
time  since,  we  were  here  assembled  at  the  funeral  of  an  officer 
of  the  army ;  now,  at  the  interment  of  an  officer  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church.  Few  words  need  to  be  said  ;  for  this  silent  form 
is  the  speaker. 

Mr.  Blatchford  was  one  of  a  numerous  family,  descended 
from  a  most  excellent  Christian  parentage.  I  recall  their  ven- 
erable forms  and  impressive  manners.  The  father  was  an  emi- 
nent minister  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  two  of  his  sons 
were  also  clergymen.  Never  was  there  a  group  of  children 
who  could  more  truthfully  appropriate  to  themselves  the  lines 
of  Cowper : 

"  My  boast  is  not  that  I  deduce  my  birth 
From  loins  enthroned  and  rulers  of  the  earth; 
But  higher  far  my  proud  pretensions  rise, 
The  son  of  parents  pass'd  into  the  skies." 

At  fourteen  years  of  age,  Mr.  Samuel  M.  Blatchford  made 
confession  of  his  faith  in  Christ,  in  connection  with  the  Church 
of  Rev.  Dr.  Romeyn,  in  this  city.     His  personal  experience 


*Mr.  Blatchford  was  buried  from  the  Madison  Square  Presbyterian  Church,  on 
the  first  Sabbath  in  June,  1864,  immediately  after  the  administration  of  the  Lord's 
Supper.  The  body  was  met  at  the  door  by  the  pastor  and  elders  of  the  Church, 
and  was  placed  in  front  of  the  pulpit,  where,  a  moment  before,  the  communion 
table  had  stood. 


92  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

always  prompted  him  to  a  special  interest  in  the  early  confir- 
mation of  the  young  on  the  Lord's  side. 

Qn  my  coming  to  this  city,  nearly  thirty  years  ago,  I  found 
him  a  member  of  the  Central  Church,  and,  in  1836,  he  was 
elected,  in  that  Church,  a  ruling  elder.  Of  the  Session  to 
which  he  was  then  united,  but  one  now  survives,  and  he  at  pres- 
ent is  a  member  of  another  church.  What  pleasant  and  fragrant 
memories  are  associated  with  their  names.  Their  faces  come 
back  to  me,  and  the  tones  of  their  voices  in  prayer.  We  took 
sweet  counsel  together,  with  nothing  which  occasions  pain,  till 
death  divided  us. 

The  private  walk  and  conversation  of  Mr  Blatchford  were 
such  as  to  command  confidence  and  respect.  His  children 
revered,  as  well  as  loved  him.  He  was  modest,  unobtrusive, 
and  sincere.  Never  demonstrative  in  his  manners,  he  im- 
pressed all  who  knew  him  with  his  real  goodness. 

My  associations  with  him  as  an  Elder  were  more  than  pleas- 
ant. He  was  a  wise  counsellor.  Independent  in  judgment,  he 
never  made  that  independence  an  excuse  for  rudeness,  nor  did 
he  ever  use  it  for  purposes  of  self-will,  offence  and  unkindness. 
Rare  opportunities  has  a  minister  to  judge  of  character,  in  the 
administration  of  ecclesiastical  affairs.  Some  are  known  most 
favorably  where  they  are  known  superficially.  By  frequent 
contact,  the  gilding  wears  off,  and  there  is  no  basis  for  confi- 
dence. With  Mr.  Blatchford,  no  one  even  suspected  there  was 
anything  in  him  'to  be  found  out  which  was  not  to  his  credit. 
He  had  a  good  report  of  those  who  are  without ;  and  the  more 
thoroughly  he  was  known,  the  more  solid  his  worth  appeared. 

It  was  in  the  house  of  God,  in  the  midst  of  public  worship, 
that  he  was  stricken  with  that  disease  which  at  length  bore  him 
to  the  grave.  Rallying  from  that  sudden  attack,  he  recovered 
a  good  degree  of  vigor,  and  was  uniformly  cheerful,  sustained 
by  the  hopes  of  religion  and  his  faith  in  Christ.  His  deportment 
to  the  very  last,  till  consciousness  was  clouded  by  the  process 
of  dissolution,  was  in  beautiful  consistency  with  his  whole 
Christian  life.  He  fell  asleep,  in  the  time  of  the  Spring  blos- 
soms and  flowers,  leaving  to  his  family  the  priceless  legacy  of 
his  pure  and  honorable  name,  and  to  the  Church  the  memory 
of  his  usefulness. 


THE  REVEREND  JOHN  BLATOHFORD,  D.D. 

Obituary. 

The  Reverend  John  Blatchford,  D.D.,  was  born  at  New- 
field,  now  Bridgeport,  Connecticut,  May  24th,  1799.  His  father 
removed  to  Lansingburgh,  New  York,  in  1804.  Here,  in  1816, 
he  united  with  the  Church,  and  his  attention  was  soon  turned 
to  the  ministry.  His  preparatory  studies  were  first  at  Cam- 
bridge Academy,  and  afterwards  at  Salem,  New  York.  He 
entered  Union  College  in  1817,  and  graduated  there  in  1820. 
His  theological  studies  were  pursued  at  the  seminary  at  Prince- 
ton, New  Jersey.  He  was  licensed  to  preach,  by  the  Presby- 
tery of  Troy,  in  1823.  He  was  first  settled  at  Pittstown,  New 
York,  and  was  ordained  and  installed  there  in  August,  1823. 
The  Reverend  Dr.  John  B.  Romeyn,  of  New  York,  preached 
the  sermon  on  the  occasion,  and  the  Reverend  Mr.  Beman  made 
the  ordaining  prayer.  His  father  gave  the  charge  to  the  pastor, 
and  the  Reverend  Ravaud  K.  Rodgers  gave  the  charge  to  the 
people.  He  remained  at  Pittstown  till  the  Spring  of  1825, 
when  he  received  and  accepted  a  call  to  Still  water,  New  York. 
In  1829,  he  accepted  a  call  to  the  Congregational  Church  in  his 
native  place,  where  he  labored  with  much  acceptance  till  1836, 
when,  on  account  of  his  wife's  health,  he  removed  to  the  West, 
spending  the  Winter  of  1836-7  in  Jacksonville,  Illinois.  In 
1837,  he  was  called  to  Chicago,  where  he  continued  till  1840. 
From  1841  to  1844  he  was  connected  with  Marion  College,  in 
Missouri,  first  as  Professor,  and  afterwards  as  President.  His 
health  becoming  impaired,  he  removed  to  Quincy,  Illinois, 
which  place  was  his  residence  at  the  time  of  his  death.  He 
died  in  Saint  Louis,  at  the  residence  of  his  son-in-law,  Morris 
Collins,  Esq.,  April  8th,  1855* 

The  following  is  an  extract  from  the  sermon  preached  at 
his  funeral,  in  Quincy,  April  12th,  1855,  by  the  Reverend  Dr. 

*  See  note,  page  *7l. 


94  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

Post :  "  The  painful  malady  of  which  he  died  "  (malignant 
pustule)  "  was  of  two  months'  duration.  Its  course  was  marked 
by  the  most  intense  suffering  to  which  disease  can  expose  man. 
But,  through  all,  his  faith,  his  patience,  his  trust,  and  submis- 
sion, through  Christ,  we  believe,  that  strengthened  him,  never 
failed.  The  Angel  of  the  Covenant,  '  one  like  to  the  Son  of 
God,'  went  through  the  furnace  with  him.  His  mind  was  per- 
fectly tranquil,  perfectly  at  rest.  All  was  peace.  On  Sunday, 
the  last  day  of  his  life,  a  few  hours  before  his  death,  he  fol- 
lowed through  the  reading  of  the  23d  Psalm  by  his  son,  with 
much  manifest  comfort,  and,  with  frequent  responses,  indicated 
his  appreciation  and  enjoyment  of  it.  A  short  time  before  he 
died,  the  spirit  that  seemed  to  have  gone  far  down  the  dark 
valley,  never  to  return,  came  back  once  more,  and  looked  out 
in  clear  intelligence  from  that  eye  which  then  was  closing  for 
ever.  In  the  stillness  of  that  awful  moment,  I  said  to  him, 
'  Brother,  do  you  not  feel  the  Saviour  near  you  ?  Does  he  sus- 
tain you  % '  He  answered,  with  a  most  meaning  look  of  the 
eye,  a  repeated  pressure  of  the  hand,  and  attempted  murmurs 
from  his  palsied  mouth,  '  Yes,  yes.'  This,  friends,  was  the  last 
testimony  of  our  beloved  brother — the  last  words  of  John 
Blatchford  to  this  world,  till  the  heavens  and  the  earth  be  no 
more.  Ages  shall  not  add  thereto,  nor  can  they  subtract  from 
it." 


EDGCUMBE  HEATH  BLATCHFOED. 

The  following  is  taken  from  the  Neiu  York  Evangelist  of  February  24th,  1853. 

Died,  at  liis  residence  in  this  city,  on  Sunday  night  of  last 
week,  Edgcumbe  Heath  Blatchford,  Esq.,  for  some  ten  years 
a  ruling  elder  in  the  Mercer  Street  Church,  aged  42. 

In  the  death  of  Mr.  Blatchford,  his  family  has  been  be- 
reaved of  an  affectionate  husband  and  father — numerous  rela- 
tions and  friends  of  a  bright  ornament  of  their  social  circle — 
the  church  to  which  he  belonged  of  a  devoted  and  efficient 
officer — and  the  community  of  a  useful  citizen.  He  was  a 
man  of  eminent  and  warm-hearted  piety,  adorning  his  profes- 
sion— liberal  and  large  hearted  in  his  benefactions — active  and 
faithful  in  his  duties  as  Superintendent  of  the  Sabbath  School 
— earnest  and  tender  in  his  instructions  and  appeals  to  the 
members  of  his  Bible  class,  seeking  their  salvation.  For  a 
number  of  years,  an  insidious  consumption  had  been  invading 
his  frame,  and  removing  him,  for  successive  winters,  to  a  milder 
climate.  He  had  been  steadily  ripening  for  Heaven.  He  had 
learned  its  language.  He  was  breathing  its  atmosphere.  He 
was  ready  and  willing  to  depart  and  enter  on  its  glorious  and 
eternal  companionship.  He  had  been  aware,  for  some  time,  of  the 
steady  and  stealthy  and  near  approach  of  the  pale  messenger. 
He  was  prepared  to  welcome  his  coining,  having  his  loins  girt, 
and  his  lamp  burning.  A  half  hour  before  his  departure, 
having  slept  little  for  several  days  and  nights,  under  the  action 
of  intense  suffering,  he  submissively  observed  to  his  wife,  who 
was  watching  over  him  :  "  How  sweet  it  would  be  to  fall  asleep 
and  awake  in  Heaven  ! "  He  soon  sank  apparently  into  a  quiet 
slumber,  and,  unobserved,  his  ransomed  spirit  took  wings  for 
its  flight  to  Heaven.  His  prayer  was  granted.  He  was  gone. 
His  remains  sleep  in  Greenwood.     His  spirit  sings  in  Heaven. 


GENEALOGY. 

Henry  Blatchford,  of  Plymouth  Dock,  Devonshire,  Eng- 
land— married,  in  1766,  Mary  Heath,  of  Totness,  Devonshire 
— died  October  10th,  1781,  aged  63  years.  Their  children 
were : 

1.  Samuel — born  at  Plymouth  Dock,  August  1st,  1767 — 
died  at  Lansingburgh,  New  York,  March  17th,  1828. 

2.  Jane — married  Christopher  Burns,  of  Plymouth  Dock. 

3.  Joseph — died  at  the  age  of  five  years. 

4.  William — died  in  infancy. 

Mary,  widow  of  Henry  Blatchford,  married  James  Howell. 

Thomas  Windeatt,  of  Totness,  Devonshire — married  Mary 
Milford,  of  Exeter,  Devonshire.     Their  children  were : 

1.  Samuel  Milford — married  Sophia  Read. 

2.  Eliza — married  Lawrence  Reeves,  surgeon,  of  London. 

3.  Mary — married  Thomas  Edwards,  merchant,  of  London. 

4.  Sarah. 

5.  Alicia — born  at  Bridgetown,  Totness,  November  19th, 
1767 — died  at  Lansingburgh,  December  2d,  1846. 

Samuel  Blatchford — married,  March  25th,  1788,  Alicia, 
daughter  of  Thomas  Windeatt,  of  Totness.  Their  children 
were: 

1.  Henry — born  at  Ford,  Devonshire,  December  4th,  1788 
— died  at  Princess  Anne,  Maryland,  September  7th,  1822. 

2.  Mary  Milford  Windeatt — born  at  Frogmore,  Devonshire, 
January  21th,  1790 — died  at  Lansingburgh,  August  17th, 
1847. 

3.  Alicia  Windeatt — born  at  Topsham,  Devonshire,  Feb- 
ruary 14th,  1791 — died  at  Lansingburgh,  April  21st,  1808. 

4.  Sarah — born  at  Topsham,  April  23d,  1792 — died  at  Top- 
sham,  June  23d,  1793. 

5.  Samuel — born  at  Topsham,  May  3d,  1793 — died  at  Top- 
sham, February  3d,  1794. 

13 


98  THE   BLATCHFOED   MEMORIAL. 

6.  Thomas  Windeatt— born  at  Topsham,  July  20th,  1794 — 
died  at  Troy,  New  York,  January  7th,  1866. 

7.  Harriet  Peacock — born  at  Bedford,  New  York,  October 
25th,  1795— died  at  Lansingburgh,  March  18th,  1819. 

8.  Samuel  Mil  ford — born  at  Greenfield,  Connecticut,  Jan- 
uary 5th,  1797— died  at  New  York,  June  3d,  1864. 

9.  Richard  Milford — born  at  Stratfield,  Connecticut,  April 
23d,  1798. 

10.  John— born  at  Newfield,  Connecticut,  May  24th,  1799 
— died  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  April  8th,  1855. 

11.  Sophia — born  at  Newfield,  August  21st,  1800. 

12.  Frederick — born  at  Bridgeport,  Connecticut,  Decem- 
ber 7th,  1801. 

13.  George  Edgcumbe — born  at  Bridgeport,  January  7th, 
1803— died  at  Lansingburgh,  May  3d,  1805. 

14.  Charles  Baynhain — born  at  Lansingburgh,  September 
6th,  1804— died  at  Lansingburgh,  November  18th,  1804. 

15.  Ethelinda  Jane — born  at  Lansingburgh,  November 
23d,  1805. 

16.  George  Edgcumbe — born  at  Lansingburgh,  August  1st, 
1807— died  at  Lansingburgh,  August  24th,  1808. 

17.  Edgcumbe  Heath — born  at  Lansingburgh,  March  24th, 
1811— died  at  New  York,  February  14th,  1853. 

Henry,  eldest  son  and  eldest  child  of  the  Reverend  Sam- 
uel Blatchford — born  at  Ford,  Devonshire,  December  4th, 
1788 — married,  September  10th,  1817,  Mary  Ann,  (born  at 
New  York,  January  21st,  1798 — died  at  Liverpool,  England, 
July  25th,  1869,)  daughter  of  Elisha  Coit,  Esq.,  of  New  York 
— died  at  Princess  Anne,  Maryland,  September  7th,  1822. 
Their  children  were : 

1st.  Rebecca  Coit— born  at  New  York,  July  26th,  1818— 
married,  July  24th,  1839,  Marshall  S.  Scudder,  (born  at  Bos- 
ton, Massachusetts,  May  31st,  1818,)  son  of  Charles  Scudder, 
Esq. 

2d.  Harriet  Alicia — born  at  Salem,  Massachusetts,  Feb- 
ruary 26th,  1820— died  at  Salem,  March  6th,  1820. 

3d.  Alicia  Harriet — born  at  Lansingburgh,  June  1st,  1821 
— married,  August  16th,  1841,  Charles  W.  Scudder,  (born  at 


GENEALOGY.  99 

Boston,  January  4th,   1820,)   son  of  Charles   Scudder,    Esq. 
Their  children  were : 

1.  Francis  Henry — born  at  Boston,  March  30th,  1842 — married,  June  11th 
1867,  Sarah  Rollins,  (born  at  Bath,  Maine,  September  7th,  1843,)  daughter  of  Gil- 
bert C.  Trufant.     Their  child  was : 

(1.)  Charles  Marshall — born  at  Boston,  March  16th,  1868. 

2.  Henry  Blatchford — born  at  Brookline,  Massachusetts,  June  18th,  1844 — 
married,  April  20th,  1866,  Julia  Randolph,  (born  at  Boston,  April  29th,  1843,) 
daughter  of  Oliver  Hazard  Perry.     Their  children  were: 

(1.]  Mary  Moseley — born  at  Needham,  Massachusetts,  April  21st,  1867. 
(2.)  Marshall  Sears — born  at  Needham,  May  9th,  1870. 

3.  Winthrop  Saltonstall— born  at  Brookline,  July  24th,  1847. 

4.  Mary  Windeatt — born  at  Brookline,  May  27th,  1851 — died  at  Westboro  , 
Massachusetts,  September  14th,  1853. 

5.  Bessie  Marshall — born  at  Brookline,  October  1st,  1853. 

Thomas  Windeatt,  third  son  and  sixth  child  of  the  Rever- 
end Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Topsham,  Devonshire,  July 
20th,  1794 — married,  February  3d,  1819,  Harriet,  (born  at 
Huntington,  New  York,  May  25th,  1789,)  daughter  of  Thomas 
Wickes,  Esq.,  of  Jamaica,  New  York — died  at  Troy,  New 
York,  January  7th,  1866.     Their  children  were : 

1st.  Thomas  Wickes — born  at  Jamaica,  February  20th, 
1820 — married,  November  9th,  1847,  Jane  Bunce,  (born  at 
Brooklyn,  New  York,  April  12th,  1830— died  at  Smithtown, 
New  York,  October  15th,  1865,)  daughter  of  Jeffrey  Smith, 
Esq.,  of  Brooklyn— died  at  Troy,  August  23d,  1863.  Their 
child  was : 

1.  Amy — born  at  Great  Barrington,  Massachusetts,  September  4th,  1855. 

2d.  Samuel  T.,  born  at  Jamaica,  March  1th,  1822 — mar- 
ried, December  27th,  1818,  Agnes  Euphemia,  (born  at  Mount 
■Pleasant,  New  Jersey,  October  2d,  1821,)  daughter  of  Edward 
Leadbeater,  Esq.,  of  New  York.     Their  children  were : 

1.  Thomas  Windeatt — born  at  New  York,  September  3d,  1851 — died  at  Troy, 
January  7th,  1856. 

2.  Kate — born  at  Federal  Store,  New  York,  October  3d,  1853 — died  at  Brook- 
lyn, New  York,  July  29th,  1857. 

3.  Thomas  Windeatt — born  at  New  York,  January  24th,  1857. 

4.  Richard  Milford — born  at  Fort  Hamilton,  New  York,  August  7th,  1859. 

3d.  John  T.,  born  at  Jamaica,  June  18th,  1823. 
1th.  George   Edgcumbe,  born  at  Jamaica,  January  26th, 
1825— died  at  Troy,  October  5th,  1828. 


100  THE  BLATCHFOED   MEMORIAL. 

5th.  Harriet  Wickes — born  at  Jamaica,  May  8th,  1828 — 
died  at  Troy,  August  18th,  1828. 

6th.  Harriet  Wickes — born  at  Troy,  February  21st,  1829. 

Samuel  Milford,  fourth  son  and  eighth  child  of  the  Eev- 
erend  Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Greenfield,  Connecticut, 
January  5th,  1797— married,  April  19th,  1819,  Betsey  H., 
(born  at  New  Canaan,  Connecticut,  June  11th,  1799,)  daugh- 
ter of  Samuel  Kellogg,  Esq.,  of  New  York — died  at  New  York 
June  3d,  1864.     Their  children  were  : 

1st.  Alicia  Harriet — born  at  Utica,  New  York,  January 
31st,  1820— married,  December  1st,  1841,  Nathaniel  Fuller 
Hopkins,  (born  at  Hanover,  New  Hampshire,  July  2d,  1809 
— died  at  Staten  Island,  New  York,  August  19th,  1851,)  son  of 
Daniel  Hopkins,  Esq.,  of  Salem,  Massachusetts.  Their  chil- 
dren were : 

1.  Samuel  Milford  Blatchford— born  at  New  York,  September  19th,  1842. 

2.  Susan  Ten  Brook — born  at  New  York,  January  14th,  1844. 

3.  Henry  Coman — bora  at  New  York,  May  2d,  1845. 

4.  Mary  Emerson — born  at  New  York,  February  24th,  184*7; 

6.  Sarah  Lothrop — born  at  New  York,  December  28th,  1849 — died  at  Staten 
Island,  September  8th,  1850. 

6.  Nathaniel  Fuller — born  at  New  York,  September  10th,  1851. 
2d.  Henry  Samuel — born  at  Utica,  June  3d,  1823 — mar- 
ried, June  17th,  1844,  Martha,  (born  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  Jan- 
uary 25th,  1826,)  daughter  of  William  Crossman,  Esq.,  of  Cin- 
cinnati— died  at  New  York,  February  3d,  1869.  Their  chil- 
dren were  : 

1.  Richard  Milford — born  at  Cincinnati,  June  12th,  1845. 

2.  Helen  Alicia  Therese — born  at  Cincinnati,  November  27th,  1849. 

3d.  James  Wilson — born  at  New  York,  May  8th,  1825 — 
married,  June  12th,  1850,  Emeline  W.,  (born  at  New  York, 
May  26th,  1832— died  at  New  York,  July  22d,  1855,)  daughter 
of  G.  Washington  Smith,  Esq.     Their  children  were : 

1.  Sarah  L. — bora  at  New  York,  May  20th,  1852 — died  at  Long  Branch,  New 
Jersey,  July  24th,  1852. 

2.  William  K.  L.— bom   at  New  York,  October  20th,  1853— died  at  Staten 
Island,  New  York,  February  8th,  1857. 

James  Wilsou  Blatchford  married,  April  6th,  1858,  Rosina, 
(born  at  Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  January  27th,  1826,)  daugh- 
ter of  William  Jenkins,  Esq.,  of  Lancaster.  Their  children 
were : 


GENEALOGY.  101 

1.  Pattie  Lane — born  at  New  York,  January  27th,  1859. 

2.  Ellen  Julia — born  at  New  York,  December  28th,  1866. 

4th.  Samuel  Milford — born  at  New  York,  October  25th, 
1835. 

Richard  Milford,  fifth  son  and  ninth  child  of  the  Reverend 
Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Stratfield,  Connecticut,  April  23d, 
1798 — married,  May  17th,  1819,  Julia  Ann,  (born  at  New 
York,  July  24th,  1798— died  at  New  York,  December  23d, 
1857,)  daughter  of  John  P.  Mumford,  Esq.,  of  New  York. 
Their  children  were : 

1st.  Samuel — born  at  New  York,  March  9th,  1820 — mar- 
ried, December  17th,  1844,  Caroline  Frances,  (born  at  London, 
England,  August  27th,  1817,)  daughter  of  Eben  Appleton, 
Esq.,  of  Lowell,  Massachusetts.     Their  child  was  : 

1.  Samuel  Appleton — born  at  Hell  Gate,  New  York,  September  9th,  1845 — 
married,  June  10th,  1869,  Wilhelmina  Bogart,  (born  at  Grassy  Point,  New  York, 
April  11th,  184S,)  daughter  of  Abraham  B.  Conger,  Esq.,  of  Waldberg,  New 
York. 

2d.  Mary  Milford— born  at  New  York,  October  29th,  1823 
— married,  June  18th,  1851,  Burr  W.  Griswold,  (born  at 
Goshen,  Connecticut,  September  5th,  1823,)  son  of  the  Rever- 
end Darius  O.  Griswold — died  at  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  Feb- 
ruary 14th,  1852. 

3d.  Julia  Alicia — born  at  New  York,  August  9th,  1830 — 
died  at  New  York,  November  25th,  1831. 

4th.  Julia  Maria— born  at  New  York,  October  4th,  1834 — 
married,  March  3d,  1856,  Edward  Tuckerman  Potter,  (born  at 
Schenectady,  New  York,  September  25th,  1831,)  son  of  the 
Right  Reverend  Alonzo  Potter,  D.D.     Their  children  were  : 

1.  Julian — born  at  New  Rochelle,  New  York,  August  10th,  1858. 

2.  Ethelinda  Blatchford — born  at  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  November  20th, 
1860. 

3.  Edward  Clarkson— born  at  New  York,  August  11th,  1862. 

4.  Robert  Francis — born  at  New  York,  May  17th,  1864. 

5.  Richard  Milford  Blatchford — born  at  Paris,  France,  December  1st,  1869. 

5th.  Sophia  Ethelinda — born  at  New  York,  May  25th, 
1836. 

Richard  Milford  Blatchford  married,  November  8th,  1860, 
Angelica,  (born  at  New  York,  November  13th,  1819 — died  at 
New  York,  November  10th,  1868,)  daughter  of  James  A. 
Hamilton,  Esq.,  of  Nevis,  Westchester  county,  New  York. 


102  THE  BLATCHFORD  MEMORIAL. 

Richard  Milford  Blatchford  married,  January  18th,  1870, 
Katharine,  (born  at  New  York,  January  9th,  1819,)  daughter 
of  Philip  Hone,  Esq.,  of  New  York. 

John,  sixth  son  and  tenth  child  of  the  Reverend  Samuel 
Blatchford — born  at  Newfield,  Connecticut,  May  24th,  1799 — 
married,  May  18th,  1825,  Frances,  (born  at  Jamaica,  New 
York,  May  12th,  1805,)  daughter  of  Eliphalet  Wickes,  Esqr.,  of 
Jamaica — died  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  April  8th,  1855.  Their 
children  were : 

1st.  Eliphalet  Wickes — born  at  Stillwater,  New  York,  May 
31st,  1826— married,  October  7th,  1858,  Mary  Emily,  (born  at 
Hadley,  Illinois,  June  16th,  1834,)  daughter  of  John  C.  Wil- 
liams, Esq.,  of  Chicago,  Illinois.     Their  children  were  : 

1.  Paul— bora  at  Chicago,  July  18th,  1859. 

2.  Amy— born  at  Chicago,  May  20th,  1862. 

3.  Frances  May — born  at  Chicago,  May  25th,  1865. 

4.  Edward  Williams — born  at  Chicago,  July  13th,  1868. 

2d.  Richard  Milford — born  at  Stillwater,  August  20th, 
1827— died  at  Bridgeport,  Connecticut,  February  20th,  1832. 

3d.  Martha  Wickes— born  at  Stillwater,  June  17th,  1829— 
married,  November  4th,  1852,  Morris  Collins,  of  St.  Louis,  Mis- 
souri, (born  at  Blanford,  Massachusetts,  October  18th,  1813,) 
son  of  Amos  M.  Collins,  Esq.,  of  Hartford,  Connecticut — died 
at  Hartford,  May  19th,  1S62.     Their  children  were : 

1.  John  Blatchford — born  at  Quincy,  Illinois,  September  7th,  1853. 

2.  Francis  Wickes — born  at  St.  Louis,  December  25th,  1854 — died  at  St.  Louis, 
January  3d,  1859. 

3.  Mary  Lyman — born  at   St.  Louis,  September  1st,  1856 — died  at  St.  Louis, 
December  22d,  1858. 

4.  Amos  Morris— born  at  St.  Louis,  November  25th,  1857. 

5.  Martha  Blatchford— born  at  St.  Louis,  July  12th,  1859. 

6.  Alice  Blatchford— born  at  Hartford,  November  30th,  1860. 

7.  Richard   Ely— born   at   Hartford,    May  9th,  1862— died  at   Wethersfield, 
Connecticut,  September  5th,  1862. 

4th.  John  Samuel — born  at  Bridgeport,  January  19th, 
1831. 

5th.  Frances  Alicia — born  at  Bridgeport,  September  6th, 
1832— died  at  West  Ely,  Missouri,  June  6th,  1846. 

6th.  Eliza  Allen — born  at  Bridgeport,  September  22d,  1834 
— died  at  Bridgeport,  June  19th,  1835. 


GENEALOGY.  103 

7th.  Harriett  Punnett — born  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  May 
9th,  1837— died  at  Chicago,  Illinois,  August  7th,  1838. 

8th.  Eliza  Harriet — born  at  Chicago,  November  21st,  1838 
—died  at  Chicago,  March  3d,  1839. 

9th.  Alexander — born  at  Wheeling,  Virginia,  January  1st, 
1810— died  at  Quincy,  Illinois,  October  9th,  1847, 

1 0th.  Mary  Cebra — born  at  Marion  College,  Missouri,  Oc- 
tober 23d,  1843 — died  at  Quincy,  December  27th,  1849. 

11th.  Alice  Windeatt — born  at  Quincy,  December  20th, 
1847. 

12th.  Nathaniel  Hopkins — born  at  Quincy,  September 
25th,  1849. 

Frederick,  seventh  son  and  twelfth  child  of  the  Reverend 
Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Bridgeport,  Connecticut,  Decem- 
ber 7th,  1801 — married,  January  6th,  1823,  Almira,  (born  at 
Great  Barrington,  Massachusetts,  September  5th,  1803 — died 
at  West  Ely,  Missouri,  May  23d,  1865,)  daughter  of  Solomon 
Jones,  Esq.     Their  children  were  : 

1st.  George  Edgcumbe — born  at  Oran,  New  York,  No- 
vember 5th,  1825 — married,  December  4th,  1856,  Lydia  Mel- 
vina,  (born  at  Westfield,  New  York,  December  4th,  1826,) 
daughter  of  Luther  Overton,  of  Mineral  Point,  Wisconsin. 

2d.  Sarah  Jane — born  at  Brooklyn,  New  York,  July  6th, 
1837— died  at  Troy,  New  York,  August  14th,  1838. 

3d.  Mary  Jane — born  at  Brooklyn,  August  23d,  1838 — mar- 
ried, September  6th,  1865,  William  B.  Watson,  (born  at  New 
York,  August  23d,  1836,)  son  of  John  Watson,  of  West  Ely, 
Missouri.     Their  child  was  : 

1.  Harriet  Almira — born  at  West  Ely,  September  2d,  1867. 

4th.  Frederick  Anson — born  at  Brooklyn,  October  6th, 
1839 — died  at  Lansingburgh,  New  York,  September  16th, 
1840. 

5th  Almira — born  at  Little  Unia,  Missouri,  May  27th,  1842 
—married,  May  18th,  1865,  Thomas  Wilbur,  (born  at  Fall 
River,  Massachusetts,  September  17th,  1839,)  son  of  Thomas 
Wilbur,  M.  D.,  of  Fall  River.     There  children  were  : 

1.  Kate  S. — born  at  Ralls,  Missouri,  July  23d,  1866 — died  at  Ralls,  September 
4th,  1867. 

2.  Annie  Morris — born  at  Ralls,  May  21st,  1869. 


104  THE   BLATCHFORD   MEMORIAL. 

6th.  Sarah  Julia — born  at  Little  Unia,  June  14th,  1845 — 
married,  May  4th,  1865,  Will  H.  H.  Morriss,  (born  at  Philadel- 
phia, Missouri,  August  24th,  1840,)  son  of  Henry  Morriss,  of 
Lewis  County,  Missouri.     Their  child  was  : 

1.  Allie — born  in  Lewis   County,  Missouri,  October  17th,  1868. 

Frederick  Blatchford  married,  November  23d,  1866,  Har- 
riet Hatch,  (born  at  Coventry,  Connecticut,  April  12th,  1801,) 
daughter  of  Daniel  Hatch,  and  widow  of  the  Reverend  Joseph 
Myers,  of  Syracuse,  New  York. 

Ethelinda  Jane,  sixth  daughter  and  fifteenth  child  of  the 
Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Lansingburgh,  New 
York,  November  23d,  1805— married,  May  18th,  1847,  Pliny 
M.  Corbin,  (born  at  Craftsbury,  Vermont,  December  8th,  1801,) 
son  of  Royal  Corbin,  Esq.     Their  child  was  : 

1st.  Alicia  Blatchford — born  at  Lansingburgh,  September 
27th,  1848. 

Edgcumbe  Heath,  eleventh  son  and  seventeenth  child  of 
the  Reverend  Samuel  Blatchford — born  at  Lansingburgh,  New 
York,  March  24th,  1811— married,  October  26th,  1837,  Mary 
Ann,  (born  at  Brookline,  Massachusetts,  September  7th,  1820 — 
died  at  Cambridge,  Massachusetts,  July  25th,  1864,)  daughter 
of  the  Honorable  Samuel  Hubbard,  of  Boston,  Massachusetts — 
died  at  New  York,  February  14th,  1853.     Their  children  were  : 

1st.  Mary  Edgcumbe — born  at  New  York,  August  13th, 
1838. 

2d.  Ethelinda  Jane — born  at  New  York,  January  12th, 
1841 — married,  June  25th,  1867,  Samuel  H.  Scudder,  (born  at 
Boston,  April  13th,  1837,)  son  of  Charles  Scudder,  Esq.,  of 
Boston.     Their  child  was  : 

1.  Gardiner  Hubbard — born  at  Cambridge,  September  3d,  1869. 

3d.  Alice  Windeatt — born  at  New  York,  January  8th, 
1843— died  at  New  York,  April  28th,  1845. 

4th.  Grace  Vernon— born  at  New  York,  May  13th,  1845— 
died  at  Cambridge,  October  24th,  1861. 

5th.  Caroline  Hubbard — born  at  New  York,  June  10th, 
1851. 


